Better left Alone
by Zacatecas
Summary: When you question everything taught to you, when all you've ever known falls apart, kin who once stood by you now scorn your very existence. And when all you've held dear abandons you, what will you do? Will you run back to their lies with your tail between your legs? Or, will you keep moving forward? When faced with unending trials and tribulations, Jaune will be forced to answer.
1. First day

**Another RWBY AU, with a little slice of life and high school drama to go with it.**

Early morning, in the days following the end of summer vacation, students from the city of Vale flooded the transit centers for their daily commutes to school. For an industrial and commercial city, there were a few urban districts that gave the city a more peaceful appearance. Some urban districts, however, were not entirely for families, for the high regarded schools in Vale captured students from all over Remnant. Housing complexes and school dorms were established to allow foreign students to come and study in Vale. The two highest regarded schools were Beacon and Brigadier's Common, what separates the two is the intense militaristic policy enforced at Brigadier's Common. From both schools came great individuals, but an unspoken rivalry keeps the two at odds, and students on a constant state of prideful boastings.

For one individual, who has experienced the training methods in Brigadier's Common, rises today with peace in mind that the clothing he would dress in would no longer be the white and teal striped blazer hanging idly by his closet. It wasn't so much the type of uniform or colors that bothered him, but rather, what the former uniform forced him to remember. As a student of said military academy, the boy was well above his peers in academics, physically, however; average was perhaps the best word to describe him. As he arose from his bed, he glanced to his former uniform with the sun's beam bouncing brightly off his name tag; Jaune Arc. A name that once brought honor to his family, but now his very sight gave his father a disgusted expression. For an Arc not to graduate from Brigadier's Common was an idea unimaginable to the patriarch of the Arc household. His last words to him were perhaps the kindest mercy his father could give him, for a man to place his pride above his own kin showed just how much the two differed from one another, even to the very end.

After relishing in the memories of his past, the blonde redressed himself. Beacon's uniforms weren't exactly unique compared to Brigadier's Common; Black and Gold Blazers with black pants for the boys and similar Blazers with crimson skirts for the girls. Once dressed, the blonde grabbed his bag and began his new morning walk. Living in a complex meant a closer walking distance to school and a roof over his head. As far as he knew, only three others in the complex go to Beacon. Two older tenants worked in a club in the city, and up until now, he was the only who went to Brigadier's Common. As he was to leave the complex's gate, the blonde was greeted by a shy, but smiling acquaintance. Her smile was only apparent after she noticed his change in attire. She wore the Beacon uniform for girls, her ears twitched upon seeing a rumor actually having some truth behind it.

"G-good morning, Jaune." She chirped happily.

"Morning, Velvet." Sleep well?" Jaune's expression didn't change much, though he was rather glad to see her actually wake up on time for once.

She nodded, though, the two stood by the doorway in complete silence. Velvet twiddled her thumbs while a faint blush could be seen on her cheeks. After a while she began mumbling to herself. Thus confusing and worrying the blonde, Jaune placed his hand on her forehead. The sudden event grew an even darker blush now engulfing Velvet's cheeks.

"You didn't pull an all-nighter again, did you? I know new games are coming out this month, but you should think about your health. You need your sleep, Velv." The blonde acted as if he was an older brother, and at times, they were mistaken for siblings. Velvet wasn't exactly social, nor did she enjoy going out much, but when it came to games, it was as if a whole other person took over. At first glance she seemed like the shy type, but if anyone knew her the way Jaune did, they'd know this girl was not someone to mess with when it came to challenges by games. When she admitted to pulling an all-nighter, the blonde just sighed and faintly smiled.

"So what game was it this time?"

"G-g-Grimm S-s-s-Souls 3." She responded, for some reason unable to respond.

"Wow, I heard that game creates ragers." The blonde removed his hand from her forehead, just in time to see a sudden sparkle in her eyes

"Yep, and I only died ten times on the first boss!" Velvet declared proudly.

 _'Is that something to be proud about, though?'_ Jaune wondered, though refrained from saying it aloud.

"Just kiss already!" The two students by the gate were now deep in embarrassment as they turned to where the sound originated from. Unsurprisingly, their complex's manager was sitting just outside her room with an empty bottle in her hand. "Damn you youths, so inocent n pure..." She was drunk, again.

Seeing her in this state wasn't anything out of the ordinary, though, if she kept being this loud, she'd wake up the twins, and if that happened; it'd be a mess no one could contain.

"Ms. Falls, you really shouldn't drink so early in the morning." Jaune commented while helping the intoxicated woman back inside her house. The manner in which she was dressed gave an implication of what she was doing the night before. Now it wasn't a matter of what, but rather, who?

"So who was it this time; the two-timer, or the three-timer?" Jaune asked.

"They have names!" Cinder argued.

"What about the one who turned out to be a gir-" Velvet added.

"Okay, I get it!" For the woman, it was sad that her own tenants knew her love life well. Though, that last one was only known between these two kids, and that was better than the twins discovering. "Damn you nosy kids." She mumbled as Jaune placed her down in her living room. The whole place was a mess, cloths and undergarments mixed with takeout boxes. The stench was terrible, but the reeking alcohol emitting from the woman Jaune was carrying was more unbearable than the untended mess. Her dress was slipping off, and her eyes seemed too hazy to pay much attention to her surroundings. Carefully, the blonde fixed the woman's dress, laid her down and walked into her kitchen.

As Velvet tried to attend to her manager, the woman suddenly shot up, startling the young Faunus.

"Oi! Why ain't chu all flustered about bein in a lady's home? You should be all 'oh man, she's so hot!' Or 'I wanna steal 'er panties!' or something. I mean c'mon, I didn't loosen my dress for nothing!" Cinder hollered. Though, the blonde continued to ignore her while he prepared something in the kitchen. Thus, further angering the woman. "What's with you boys nowadays? Is bunny-girl here more your type? If that's the case, I can dress like a bunny too. Plus my boobs are bigger, and I have experience." She cooed while pointing to a flustering Velvet. When Jaune exited the kitchen, he still ignored her rambling and placed a hot cup of coffee on the table in front of her.

"Black and bitter; just how you like it. Please try to sober up; I'll come by after school to help clean this mess." He then grabbed his bag and gestured Velvet to join him. Before getting the chance to leave...

"Jaune..." Cinder reached for the blonde and kept a firm lock on his neck. "Hurry up and turn eighteen already! I'm gettin tired of waiting!" This was what the blonde feared; Cinder's death grip, an inescapable move in which she used blind rage to keep air from circulating in and out. At the moment, the blonde was struggling to break free while his bunny friend tried to help, alas, to no avail. Even when trained in a military academy, he couldn't defeat a woman with this level of fury.

 **-After ten minutes of struggling-**

On their walk to school, Jaune and Velvet took the main road to the campus, the blonde kept rubbing the reddened areas of his neck from his struggle with his manager. Hitting on him wasn't anything new, as a matter of fact, she tried to French-kiss Velvet once after a bad breakup she had. Why she was still the manager of their complex was beyond the blonde. But, in a way, it wasn't all bad; she did her job right at least.

"And then she says we're going to be late." Jaune muttered annoyingly. When he glanced to his companion, he noticed a widened grin on her lips. "You ok?" Receiving a nod as his only response, the two continued to walk with a spire in sight, Beacon's trademark. The amount of students on the road grew as the bell was about to sound for the first class. A few people looked at Jaune with various forms of confusion, mostly because he wore the third year's uniform and no third year had recollection of this blonde attending. It didn't bother him as much, though their opinions would probably sour when they found out where he attended beforehand.

The two continued to walk together until they reached the main office. "You gonna be okay? I mean, it's your first day." The bunny girl hoped her friend didn't have second thoughts about attending Beacon, though judging by his faint smile, he seemed content with coming here. "I'll be fine; the paperwork has been filed so it's official. Nothing I can do now, plus I'm not keen on all the paperwork signing either." He reassured her. Velvet bid her friend goodbye and left to class. She left with a wide smile on her face, something not everyone was used to seeing. Jaune faintly smiled, knowing full well the girl would end up sleeping in class because of her all-nighter. She'd complain about it later, and it wouldn't be only at the complex now. She'd go to him during their breaks and talk about how the teacher slammed a newspaper on her desk to wake her up. Sometimes it wasn't the desk that got punished either. Chuckling lightly to himself, Jaune entered the main office to meet with the headmaster.

At first glance, the man didn't seem at all special, but the blonde of all people knew better than to judge someone by their appearance. The man sipped on his mug of coffee and reviewed data on his scroll before addressing the blonde. And hand he did, his expression was lighter than when his former headmaster discovered the transfer transcripts.

"Jaune Arc, correct?" The headmaster asked.

"Yes, sir." The blonde replied, stiffly.

The headmaster chuckled lightly. "This isn't Brigadier's Common, mister Arc. A simple 'yes' will suffice. As of now I want you to understand that those who attend Beacon, unlike those of BC have a non-military future ahead of them. As a third year, I would advise you to look into a career that would best suit you, joining a club would also be a nice change of pace, if you're into that sort of thing. Now, rather than being subtle I'm just going to get right to the point; I am the headmaster of Beacon, you may refer to me as Professor Ozpin, and nothing more. The reason I asked for you to meet with me on your first day is to address the matter regarding your transfer. It is not something to look upon so lightly. After what occurred I would assume you-"

"I feel fine, Professor Ozpin. I've put it behind me." Jaune interrupted, unwilling to speak further of this subject. While the headmaster didn't tolerate such rudeness, taking into account this boy's recent transgressions it would make sense how little he wished to speak of it. Realizing the tone in which he used towards the headmaster, Jaune's faced paled. In a mere instance, he stood at attention. "F-forgive me, Professor. I meant no disrespect. I stand by for my punishment for showing such disrespect, sir."

Though, the headmaster was mostly surprised to see how deep of an impact Brigadier's training left in the boy, even now when he renounced his position in the school, his programming was still operating. At the moment, however, there were still matters the headmaster needed to settle. He brushed off the notion of punishment and began retrieving files from within his desk. "Fine, we'll speak of this another time. However, I must admit, you're the first student to actually transfer from Brigadier's Common, and that's not an exaggeration or assumption. As current records stand, you are the only student to have a transfer file that has you _leaving_ BC."

"It's not something surprising, is it, sir? I mean, it's not exactly an impossibility." In all honesty, Jaune never heard of anyone from Brigadier's transferring. There were many who tried to get in, but few who actually got accepted. As for leaving the school, the only ones who did were those who were expelled after failing the yearly exam; in order to advance to the next year, students were required to take a joint mission that almost always ended with less than half of the participants passing. Those that didn't pass were either kept back another year, or expelled for lacking Brigadier material.

Ozpin held up a folder and reviewed its contents while giving off a running commentary. "Quite the file; in terms of physicality, you are relatively inadequate." His blunt words were without mercy. "And in all the training spent on you, there was hardly any progress on your marks." The headmaster's grin showed how much he was enjoying the reports written by boy's the instructors. "Although, in regards to how you use your head, you are quite exceptional. Your grades are perhaps your only redeeming quality, which surprises me considering BC's standards." Ozpin's words were followed by a condescending grin; he was obviously toying with the blonde boy. Though, truth be told, looking back on it, even he was mildly curious as to why Brigadier's Common made an exception when it came to his physicals. It couldn't have been just based on family connections.

"Of course we'll have much to talk on this subject another time. Classes have already begun, and I'm sure you're eager to meet your new peers. I'm sure you'll find them a bit more...shall we say 'expressive' than what you'll find in BC." The headmaster handed the boy a slip of paper with his classes and a boy's tracksuit. "Welcome to Beacon, mister Arc."

 **-Beacon, Third year class A-**

Students were whispering loudly as the teacher had yet to start the lecture due to a transfer student arriving that same day, however, it would seem the student was late. His meeting with Ozpin was taking up too much of this class's time. When visible veins could be seen on the teacher's face, a few of the students in the front row began to worry of a possible break down. It happened before, and Goodwitch wasn't the type to go easy on passerbies either. The sound of knocking on the door silenced the whispers in an instant; the teacher stood up and waited at the front of the class as the transfer student walked in. The whole class kept their eyes on a stoic blonde as he made his way to the front. The manner in which he walked and stood showed some hints of uniformity, as if he was used to walking alongside a hundred others in unified motion. As he stood before his classmates, he glanced to the teacher whom was reviewing his file one last time. By the look on her face, she must've found out something that either she overlooked, or was left in the dark until now. The subtle shock in her expression failed to catch the attention of the students, though not the former military student.

After taking in the information, Glynda fixed her glasses and turned to the whole class. "Right then, please introduce yourself."

Almost if by instinct, Jaune stood straight and began. "Good morning, my name is Jaune Arc, ran-er..." His cutoff raised quite a few eyebrows, though he quickly recovered and finished his introduction. "I'm hoping there will be no problems between us." He bowed ever so slightly. Quite the introduction; short and simple. Before the teacher could assign him a seat, one student raised their hand and without waiting to be called upon asked a question.

"Wanna finish your sentence there; 'ran'?" The girl had short brown hair with a single long, light brown strand dangling idly by. She wasn't the only one to catch his little slip, though; he wasn't keen on branding himself by his former rank anymore.

"No." He answered stoically. Jaune had hoped to end it there, however, the unwavering smile of the girl with shades made him feel uneasy.

"Okay then, why not tell us which school you came from." She removed her shades to reveal dark brown eyes. When Jaune failed to reply, her smile seemed to fade in an instant. "Is talking not your strong suit, blondie?"

"Ms. Adel, that is enough and please remove your shades during while in class. There will be plenty of time for all of you to get acquainted after the lesson has ended. Mister Arc, take the seat behind Mister Lie. Raise your hand boy." From the left side of the class, beside the window, a boy with jet black hair and a single pink strand indicated where the blonde would sit. Calmly, Jaune walked towards his seat and ignored the various stares fixed on him. Especially the intense stare from the one named Adel. Ignoring her during a lecture was easy; she sat two seats to his right. Though, there were other methods to communicate without speaking. A traditional manner was thrown at him in the form of a folded piece of paper. Upon the paper landing on his desk, Jaune glanced around, only to have stares quickly break, all but one mind you. Strict moral codes aside, the blonde wasn't exactly the type to pass notes during class. He took the slip of paper and stuffed it in his blazer's pocket. He'd read it, just not now.

Of course, that is until another note landed on his desk. This one however wasn't folded, but rather, placed right-side up with only one simple sentence. _'Name's Coco, don't EVER call me Adel. K?'_ Right beside the question mark was a small heart. For some reason, the blonde felt like this was more of a threat than an informative. Again, Jaune stuffed the paper in his blazer and kept his focus on the lecture. After a few minutes, another piece of paper landed on his desk. By now, he was getting annoyed more than anything. As he reached for the slip, an angered palm slammed against his desk. Startling all but the transfer student of course. Though, the glare and false smile from his teacher did send a familiar chill down his spine.

"First day and we're already starting off on a bad foot, eh, mister Arc?" Goodwitch's eye twitched as she unfolded the slip of paper and read it aloud. "Why so serious, Mr. mysterious?" a small round of chuckles echoed in class. Glynda glanced to Coco, only she would actually write something like this, but without proof the girl sent it, she had one option to play. Her glare was then redirected back to Jaune. "See me after class." She then returned to her lecture. Jaune felt a small sense of anger, though on the bright side; the notes stopped. He didn't bother glancing to Coco, he knew just knew giving her any kind of attention would bring trouble his way.

Once the lesson ended, lunch began for all but one student. Jaune was currently keeping his eyes from making contact with his teacher. Their entire conversation was merely addressing the passing of notes, and Coco's tendencies to act immature at times. While she wanted to interrogate this former Brigadier student on the lessons taught at the controversial school, after hearing of a recent incident from BC, she assumed this boy transferred to Beacon because of said incident. After keeping him in for five minutes, she decided to let the blonde off with a warning. Upon exiting class, the blonde boy was greeted with the sassy brown-haired girl he had hoped to avoid. Her guiltless smile ticked him off, but before he could walk away a plastic-wrapped sandwich was shoved against his face.

"Sorry about getting you in trouble with Goodwitch." Her smile didn't fade, thus making it hard for Jaune to actually accept her apology. "Wanna have lunch with me?" She offered.

Jaune politely shoved the sandwich away from his face, and began walking past his classmate. "Thanks, but I'll have to decline." Without waiting for his classmate to make another offer or say another word, he walked away. Though, rather than walking towards the mess hall, Jaune decided to head towards the roof. Now he could see why the headmaster at Brigadier's compared students from the Common and Beacon all the time. While he couldn't deny that he missed the mature and no-nonsense attitude of his former school, at the very least the students here seemed to show more individuality. Still, his first day could've gone a bit better without that little incident with Adel. In some ways, she reminded Jaune of his younger sisters; mischievous and troublesome. Though, at this moment, he'd rather not be reminded of his kin. In all honesty, he was hoping to run into Velvet for lunch. Speaking of which…

"Jaune?" the blonde turned to the doorway where Velvet was standing with a lunchbox in hand. For once, a friendly face the boy was glad to see. However, he counted his blessings too quickly as another newcomer emerged with the bunny girl.

"Oh, you two know each other?" Coco popped out from the stairway, giving the blonde the impression that he was stricken with some sort of curse.

Given the situation, the three eventually settled down on the roof for lunch, Jaune avoided eye contact with Coco, while the latter did the complete opposite. Velvet was informed of their first interactions, which is to say it didn't start off on a good note. The blonde found Coco's curiosity annoying, while the brown-haired lass found him annoyingly curious. Their interactions showed no hostility, though it showed that Jaune had little to no interest in conversing with his classmate, which did little to deter her. As for Velvet, the blonde immediately took an opportunity to further avoid Adel and asked the bunny girl of how her classes went, and like he predicted; she fell asleep in class.

As the bunny girl rambled on about how she and her desk were smacked, Jaune showed a faint smile and even chuckled lightly when Velvet began pouting over his suggestions to ease up on her gaming time. This time, Coco felt like the third party. She watched as her friend and new classmate spoke as if they knew each other their entire lives, and maybe they did. If that was the case, then Velvet possibly knew a few things this blonde didn't give answers to. On a separate note, Coco was glad Velvet had more friends besides her; it put her mind at ease that she had more people to go to if the punks that've been harassing the poor thing lately try anything again. In a way, she didn't quite trust the blonde boy, mainly on the account that she knew very little of him. If Coco was to deal with anyone, first she asked around to gather as much Intel on the person as she could rather than going out and shooting blindly. But with this blonde; absolutely no one except Velvet knew him personally, he gave off no tells, showed no interest in anything besides his talks with Velvet, and, perhaps the best part of his mystery; no one but perhaps the faculty knew where this guy last attended. And why transfer? Did something happen at his last school, was he involved somehow?

As these questions swam in her mind, Coco failed to notice the blonde sneak away. She had hoped to speak to him a little more, seeing how she still knew nothing about him. By the time she realized the missing head, another issue came to mind.

"I just remembered. Velvet, I've got a report I was hoping you could help me with, mind if I come by your place after school?"

 **-After School-**

Upon the ringing of the bells, school had ended for the day. And while many had club activities or took transit systems home, a certain group of three walked home in an awkward silence. Velvet walked in between Jaune and Coco, whom both seemed somewhat confused as to why the other was tagging along. While Coco and Velvet were friends, she still didn't tell her that both she and the blonde lived in the same complex. The idea might've led to misunderstandings and unwanted attention. Sensing a great opportunity, Coco slipped past her friend and was now in between Velvet and Jaune. Hoping to make up for their first introduction, Coco went for softball questions.

"So, Jaune, got any hobbies?"

"No."

"Ok then. What about movies; scary, comedy, a little mix of both?"

"No."

How was it that Velvet could speak to him without getting the cold shoulder? Or perhaps a better question is how did Velvet first deal with him? Jaune was stuck-up, strict, odd, and probably found anything fun to be annoying. While she was closer to the truth than she knew, Coco wondered why the blonde even bothered speaking to her, let alone give her the time of day if he actually found her to be annoying. Which in fact was a question said blonde was currently pondering.

"What about spicy food? I know a restaurant that serves some real fire-starters." She kept on going, thinking eventually she'd get a proper, human, response.

He just couldn't piece it together; why was she still trying? Most people would've given up or just start to hate him. Were all his peers going to be like her? If only to humor her for a short time, Jaune responded. "…not really a fan, but I'd be willing to try It." And for a few seconds, Coco was silent, she finally got her _human_ response, and it didn't feel condescending. For most of the way home she kept asking him questions, though, he only gave short replies. Simple, short, and clear responses where what she got, still, it was better than getting the cold shoulder. At times, though, she did get a bit too close for comfort. On the one hand, they did hold longer conversations than on the roof. Which for Velvet, was a good thing considering both of them were her friends and she hated choosing sides. As they reached the complex, Jaune gestured to the manager's room. "I'm gonna check on Ms. Falls."

"Okay, tell her I said hi." Velvet reminded him while she took Coco to her room. The brown-haired girl glanced around to the single floor complex and wondered if any more of their peers stayed here. Once the two were alone, the questions came pouring down, and all of them from the brown-haired girl. Like most of their visits, they'd mostly study or play a few games, only this time, one topic kept coming up. Knowing she'd have these questions, and understanding why the blonde wouldn't reveal anything, Velvet did her best to keep her friend's curiosity at bay, which proved to be a challenge itself.

"C'mon Velvet, you gotta give me something. I can't figure the guy out; I get too close and he finds me annoying. I talk; he ignores. As if one mute in my class wasn't enough." Coco rambled while lying down on the floor.

"Why are you so interested in him though? Velvet asked. "Do you like him?"

"Not on your life." She brushed off the idea with a careless smile. "It's just been really boring lately, and there's this vibe around him that really catches my interest."

"Maybe you're being too aggressive with your approach. He may not seem like it, but Jaune can be a fun person to get to know, he just needs to get to know you at his own pace." Velvet reassured, remembering how hard it was for her to even get the blonde's attention the first time they met. Although, recalling past their past interactions, he was always more open when their manager was around. Jaune and Falls knew each other long before the bunny girl came into the picture, at the same time, she didn't really know how close they were.

 **-Meanwhile-**

While Velvet was busy with her guest, Jaune was treated to quite the surprise; his manager actually managed to clean up most of her room, however, at the present moment she was drunk and watching some kind of wives' drama. In fact, she was completely unaware of the blonde boy's presence until he made himself known. She was in black, laced underwear, even with the presence of the boy she remained firm, not even bothering to cover up.

"So, how was your day?" She asked nonchalantly while offering the boy a beer can.

"…eventful." He refused and sat beside her, ignoring the excess skin exposure with nary a fluster or blush for the woman to play on. Which, to be fair, was something she'd normally be bothered by, if the boy was, in a broad meaning of the word, 'normal'. Aside from those in the complex who actually spoke to the blonde, Cinder knew the rigorous training the blonde was put through in Brigadier's Common. But for him in particular, coming from his family line, military academies were basically all that he knew. Families like his were the reason Cinder preferred her current position; away from military governments and living on her own accord. In a way, she empathized with Jaune's current situation, though, she showed very little of it. The two were alike in few ways, but greatly different. Growing up as a soldier there were four things the boy had engraved in his head; honor, valor, duty, and, above all else, loyalty. On the other hand, recent events crumbled the very foundation of the ethics he was raised with.

"What about you? Did two-timer call back? Or was it three-timer?" Jaune asked. He could feel a depressing aura thickening the air. Upon glancing towards the complex manager, the woman had a gloom cloud hovering over her head.

"You know they have names, right?" her tone was devoid of emotion, as was her face. "…and it was Roman this time."

"Oh, so it was the two-timer." Jaune commented while keeping his attention on the show.

"Could you please not give my exes nicknames?"

Twenty minutes into the show, the blonde showed visible signs of boredom and arose. He walked past Falls and into the now clean kitchen. For some reason, tv shows of any kind never seemed to catch his interest. Rather, he preferred reading and comics. Granted, Cinder was relieved that he had a childish interest in comic book fables; she still couldn't help but wonder if he should go out more from time to time. By force, if necessary.

"I'm gonna make dinner." He informed the woman while searching through her fridge for ingredients.

Although, she couldn't deny how much she enjoyed his homemade meals, so, perhaps it was better if he chose to spend his time here. For the most part, things were slow and peaceful now, and Jaune didn't seem show any indications that he hated his first day, so maybe things as they were now are for the better. When she thought of what he went through before deciding to transfer to Beacon, it almost made her think about returning home. As she watched the blonde cook, she wondered if it was best to tell him that _she_ called earlier. Would he still want to talk to her, or will he reject her as she did to him? Regardless, it would have to wait as she felt an unnerving pain growing in her head just before…

The door slammed open with an annoying voice further boosting the manager's headache.

"Yo! We're here for dinner!" In walked two girls, identical in all but their clothing styles and hair length. The voice belonged to the eldest of the twins, Melanie. Behind her was her younger sister, Miltiades. The two stopped in their tracks when they noticed Falls with an angered glare.

"I have no problem with your sister, but you…" her venom was directed to the eldest of the twins. "…why are you here?"

Almost instantly, the genuine smile on Melanie's face was replaced with a false smile. "Oh, what's with the attitude Ms. Manager; did you get stood up again? Not surprising, but I wonder who it was this time." Her condescending tone was continuously driving Cinder up the wall.

"Two-timer." Jaune commented from the kitchen.

"Oh, so Roman." Melanie replied in a deadpanned manner.

"The bottom of the barrel." Miltiades added.

Almost as if defeated, Cinder slumped over her coffee table. To think her love life could be so easily identified and teased by these teenagers. She couldn't deny that having them stop by made her day just a bit brighter, disregarding the older Malachite of course. It was one thing for the blonde and bunny girl to use those nicknames, but the twins too? All that was left were for the other three tenants to arrive. Which shouldn't take long now, after all, they did this every night. The seven of them would gather at Cinder's room and they'd eat dinner together, despite the tensions between a certain few.

While the twins spoke with the blonde in the kitchen, their manager gazed at the three and analyzed the tenants she housed in her complex; an odd bunch to say the least. Six rooms; four students for Beacon, twins that get on her nerves but pay the rent on time, and an empty room still up for rent. Cinder closed her eyes and mumbled softly to herself. "Meh, it could be worse."

 **Hey guys, thanks for taking the time to read this new story of mine. Now before we proceed further, allow me to point out a few things; first, Jaune, in this story will act dark and distant at times, and the reason will be explained later. Second; this was originally intended to be only a 'slice of life' type of AU, and it'll still hold on to that element for a little while. I have decided on a pairing but I'm going to build on the plot and develop characters first so please be patient. Third; there won't be any Grimm or aura in this AU, nothing supernatural. And lastly, certain characters are still alive, despite them being branded dead in the series so; yea Pyrrha and Penny are kickin.**

 **Anyways, thank you for reading, until next time!**


	2. Family Dinner

Within Vale's urban districts, complexes often housed students for the schools in the city; some still held higher standards as to who could stay at such apartments. Cinder Fall was one of few who didn't allow for just any kind of person to take up space in her complex. On that note, it still eluded her as to why she ever allowed the Malachite twins to move in. Regardless, of all the applicants she received, only a choice few were accepted, and these were her selections; a military-raised boy, two troublesome twins, a rabbit Faunus with a passion for gaming, and two mischievous ten year olds in the body of seventeen year olds. The sixth apartment has yet to be taken due to the manager's high standards. Though, it was more a personal favor when it came to the blonde, considering he was the first tenant she had, and the amount of time he'd been under her care.

After Fall recovered from her momentary defeat, she dressed herself in more appropriate attire and awaited with the twins in the living room for dinner. Melanie and Cinder never really got along, reasons always varied from different views on living styles and the fact that Cinder actually dated their boss for a while. If they weren't so good at their job the twins would've been fired just as quickly as when Fall broke off the relationship.

In some ways, their fights were mere antics; comic relief of sorts. Though, right now, the murderous venom dripping from their false smiles indicated a great effort to hold back their lust for blood. It made sitting between them all the more frightening for one's mental structure; knowing a fight could occur, but not knowing when it will happen, only that they will definitely get caught up in it. Miltiades preferred helping out the blonde, but she knew if Melanie was left with Fall unattended, she'd probably lose a sister. Though, if she remained, she'd be torn to shreds, metaphorically speaking. As if an unknown answered her payers, or convenient timing, the buzzer for the door brought a relieved smile to Miltiades as she quickly volunteered to answer the door. Upon opening the door, she was greeted to two of the tenants of the complex; the boy was also a blonde but the girl was a redhead, both were Beacon students, and third years like Velvet and Jaune. Both were odd in very specific ways, meeting Fall's requirements quite easily.

The girl peeked inside and felt the growing tension between the two women from her position. "Hey, we made it in time to see the bloodbath." She commented with a widened grin. "So, Sun, who's your lien on this time?"

"Guys, please don't encourage them. It's been a long day." Miltiades pleaded in a hushed tone, while keeping an eye on the two on the living room. "By the way, where's Velvet? I thought she'd come with you two." She asked when noticing a missing lair of bunny ears.

As the two entered, their stares were aimed at the silent blonde in the kitchen.

"I dunno. Octavia, do you know?" Sun asked sarcastically.

The redhead clasped her hands together and gave a brightened smile. "Ya know, now that I think of it; I remember seeing little Velvet walking home with Jauney...and a new friend. From what we saw, she was very clingy towards our little mute. And would you believe it; our Jauney didn't seem to mind." The two now showed sly smiles as their manager and Melanie jerked their heads towards the stoic blonde in the kitchen. To be Velvet's friend was one thing, but for her to cling to Jaune while the boy did nothing would be nothing short of unbelievable.

"And to think it was one of the Divas of Beacon, what kind of impression did he leave on her?" Sun nudged Octavia playfully, the two snickered as both Melanie and the manager tried to comprehend what they just heard; Jaune, the usually quiet and most antisocial person they've ever known not only walked home with a girl, but on his first day of school too.

"J-Jaune, is that true?" Miltiades asked as the blonde slowly stopped his cooking and turned his head only to answer.

"...they're working on an assignment together. She's Velvet's friend, not mine." He answered coldly, greatly emphasizing the last two words. From the tone in his voice, he was either annoyed by her or the two had a bad history. Considering the latter couldn't be possible, Cinder knowing full well why, she assumed Jaune merely found the girl annoying.

In many ways, yes, the boy considered Coco a nuisance; she was immature, nosy, shows no respect for personal space, and doesn't know when to stop trying. In a matter of speaking, the blonde found the latter to be perhaps her best trait so far. He wouldn't openly admit it, but Coco was interesting to say the least. Her behavior wasn't something he dealt with before, whenever he gave people the cold shoulder they'd usually take the hint and leave him alone. Yet, she was the exception, no matter how much he avoided conversation, she still pushed. But why? Why would she continue trying, and just how long would her stubbornness last before she gave in? Will she ever give up?

She would give up, everyone did eventually, it was just a matter of time.

Deep into his thoughts, the blonde failed to notice a finger poking him. It wasn't until the owner of the finger said his name that he snapped back to reality. Miltiades was worried after she noticed the blonde completely stiff while the contents in his pot began to burn. If only for a mere instance, to keep the food from burning, Jaune frantically stirred and lowered the flames. His sudden frantic actions were a new for Miltiades who rarely saw the boy show any emotion. She giggled to herself, thinking that perhaps changing to a new school was the best move for him. Maybe he was ready to start forgetting his past, and move on with his life. As the blonde finished cooking, Miltiades noticed the boy's blazer and a few of his belongings on the dining table. Knowing he was about to finish, she decided to clean up and set the table. As she moved his belongings, Jaune's wallet fell from his blazer's pocket. The object landed with a good view of its insides, allowing Miltiades to see something she least expected; a photo of Cinder, the twins, and the blonde five years prior. It was the graduation ceremony for the twins, and perhaps one of the rare moments Jaune ever willingly appeared in a photo. Cinder had a portrait size photo in her living room, the twins kept their copy in an album amongst other memories, but she didn't think the blonde would actually carry his around like this. Thinking back on it, since the two were no longer students, they could've easily moved out and rented a new place. But, for some reason, it didn't seem right to leave, especially if Jaune was left alone with Fall.

Quickly, Miltiades picked up the wallet and placed it back in the blazer before the blonde could glance her way. After clearing the table, Miltiades walked up to the blonde who had just finished setting the plates in the dining room. Her sudden appearance caught him off guard for a mere moment. Though, he still needed to prepare for dinner, so he tried walking past her, only to have her block his way.

"Jaune..." Miltiades's tone was kept low as per a private conversation. The intense stare she gave the blonde showed how much she wanted her words to matter to him. "...I know you hate asking for help, and I know how bad you are at socializing...and using 'bad' is kind of an understatement..."

Jaune could feel the truth in her words sending a pulsing pain to his head.

"Regardless, if you ever need someone, if there's ever a time that you can no longer carry the weight alone; you can come to us. We care about you Jaune, more than you'd think. Promise me you'll ask for help, at least when you have no other option..."

When the blonde tried to respond, a cold finger pressed against his lip, halting any form of words. "I know what you're going to say, but if only for me, just lie to me and say you will. Please." Her actions gave the blonde a sense of guilt, but like many emotions, he brushed it aside while calmly grasping Miltiade's hand. He removed her finger from his face and stoically answered her.

"I don't believe in telling lies." His words were monotone, and showed no emotion whatsoever. Gently, Jaune shoved her aside; he began setting up what was left in the dining room. In a way, Miltiades expected this from Jaune, she knew how stubborn he was, and yet, she still couldn't help but wonder why he refused help of any kind. Even Fall had a tough time reaching out to him, though, Velvet had it worse in the beginning. The bunny girl attempted to make a good impression on the tenants when she first moved in, but like everyone Jaune meets for the first time; he gave her the cold shoulder. It wasn't until near the end of their first year that the blonde's attitude towards Velvet shifted, though; he never really spoke of what shifted the little barrier he placed between them. Neither did the bunny girl, and when the subject was brought up, she'd blush; further inciting the interest of their manager and the older Malachite twin. For a while, Octavia thought the two were going out, though, that little idea was almost instantly shut down when she was reminded what kind of person Jaune was.

The Malachite twins arrived at the complex just a little after Jaune, following them was Octavia, Sun, and lastly Velvet. The red head and Sun were the pranksters of the complex, either their targets were the usual; Melanie and the manager's more persistent dates, or they'd be busy pranking one another. They were quite a handful considering the fact that they were supposed to be 'Beacon's brightest'.

Miltiades focused her attention on the blonde, once, always in Brigadier's branch school uniforms. From elementary to now, it was hard to see him without those trademark colors. Regardless, no matter the attire, the boy was still the same as ever. Even if it was little by little, she'd like to see him show more emotions.

Deep within her thoughts, Miltiades failed to catch eye of the blonde passing by her while also making his way to the door. "Going somewhere?" Cinder asked, breaking off contact from Melanie, said twin was now gesturing the other two Beacon teens to come to her. Knowing these two, no doubt they'd have full details on these 'Divas', and which one was getting 'close' to Jaune.

"I'm going to see if Velvet wants to have dinner with us." The blonde responded.

In that instant, an idea sparked in Cinder's head. "Hey, if her friend is still there, invite her too. It'd be nice to meet one of Velvet's friends." For once, if only for this instance, Melanie and Cinder glanced to one another with subtle thumbs up. The two have their differences and had no warm feelings for one another, but one goal was certain at this point; analyze this 'Diva' and determine what kind of person she was.

Showing no pleasure for her idea, Jaune nodded and hoped Coco would refuse. As he made his way out the door; the tenants and their manager all huddled by the window to get a glance at Velvet's friend. It wouldn't take long; after all, the bunny girl's room was across from the manager's.

Coco lay across her best friend's living room floor, staring aimlessly at the ceiling. She kept hoping something interesting would happen for their third year at Beacon, and as if answering her prayers; the mysterious blonde suddenly appears. While she preferred he speak a little more, she couldn't help but wonder what kind of person he was. Just a day wasn't enough to make a plausible speculation. Though, there were a few words she could use to describe his cold attitude. But, using them would only crumble her chance at uncovering his secrets. Jaune wasn't exactly in the same category as Lie Ren, but he was close. The green clad was occasionally stoic too, but he did show some human emotions from time to time. Coco then began to wonder if perhaps, Velvet is to Jaune in the same manner that a certain bubbly girl is to Ren. That would make things less interesting, if Velvet was anything like said bubbly teen. Which, thankfully, she wasn't.

As far as what she gained from Velvet; Jaune did enjoy a good comic or book. The school had a big library, though; it's not exactly a place Coco considered a fun hangout spot. Comics on the other hand, for a boy, it didn't surprise her, but she still found it hard to believe Jaune was still into comics. She herself remembered following a few series herself, though she moved on to other things and now had little to no interest in them anymore. She turned her gaze to Velvet who was busy changing out of her school cloths, the two of them were busy up until now with Coco's project that the bunny girl didn't have a chance to change when she got home. When Velvet wasn't pulling all-nighters and sleeping in class, she was well above the average student. Though, because of her little habit, she was placed in class 3B, on the account of sleeping during the end of the year exam. In fact, she seemed pretty down when she found out Jaune was placed in class 3A. It didn't surprise her that he was in that class, the two of them usually studied together, something of which came as a somewhat surprise to Coco.

Like most schools, Beacon ranked its students through their overall performance. 'A' being the highest and 'F' being the lowest, obviously. Rather than an underclassman skipping two grades and being placed in a class higher than her sibling, nothing big was occurring in Beacon. There was the rivalry between Beacon and Brigadier's, but tensions weren't high enough to start fights, surprisingly, and both schools were a respective distance from one another that problems with students rarely occurred. So, with no exaggeration intended, Jaune's arrival was perhaps the only interesting event going on at the moment. More so the fact that he was a big mystery; refusal to speak of his previous school, hardly speaks, and has selective interests. A cliché for novels or stories, but a gift for a boring school life.

A soft knock on the door quickly gained the attention of said bunny girl as she wasted no time leaving her room with a cream-colored tank-top and light brown shorts. Coco chuckled lightly to herself, seeing as how this was the first time she ever saw Velvet dressed in anything but her school uniform. While they were close friends, they never really hung out outside school. One was either busy with club activities, or a new game came out and all Velvet would do was play. Games weren't exactly Coco's preferred pastime. She'd play once in a while, but definitely not as much as Velvet. Speaking of which, as the girl opened the door, she was met with the stoic blonde.

"H-hey Jaune, what's up?" The bunny girl asked, fixing her clothing.

"Everyone's ready." His eyes glanced to her living room, sighing faintly upon noticing Coco lying on the floor. "Cinder said if she wants to join us, its fine." He gestured to Adel, whom seemed somewhat confused about the unfolding situation.

"Umm, could you give me a moment, please?" Velvet asked, to which he nodded and stood outside. Allowing the bunny girl to close the door, when she turned to Coco, she could instantly tell the many questions that were going to be asked. So, she took in a deep breath and laid it all out in one go. "Okay, yes, Jaune and I live in the same complex. Which, honestly, should've been established earlier, but, moving on; every night all of the tenants and the manager get together for dinner. It's not mandatory but we've all been doing it for so long it kind of feels like we have to now, and if you don't want to go, believe me I get it. But please, for the love of Oum, if you do; don't provoke my manager." Velvet placed her palms together and bowed as low as her torso could. Obviously, there was something about the manager that Coco had to tread lightly on. And while she had the option to reject the offer, she found herself in a position where she could learn more about the blonde in a single hour.

Coco placed her hand gently on Velvet's shoulder, giving the bunny girl a comforting smile. "Velvet, you're my friend, you should know me by now." The aura around her was oddly comforting.

Though, Velvet seemed even more concerned. "That's exactly why I'm worried." She mumbled.

As the blonde waited outside, the two teens eventually exited the apartment. Just as they were about to head over to Cinder's room, Coco stood in front of Jaune and smiled widely. She had an idea to catch him by surprise, although, she didn't exactly think it through. "This Friday, let's go on a date." Her bold statement stopped Velvet in her track; a select few peeking through the window felt a massive chill run up their spine. Glancing towards their manager, they noticed Cinder and Melanie with empty expressions of joy, their palms gripping the window stile to the point of breaking it.

Oddly, and perhaps the only one unfazed with the developing situation, Jaune remained stoic. "No." Was his simple response.

"That was quick. Mind if I ask why you shot me down?" Coco asked still smiling, though her head was tilted to the side.

"We just met today, and up until now I find you a nuisance, immature, nosy, disrespectful, no regard for personal space..."

"Wow, you're not holding back." Coco commented, her smile still holding up.

"I don't believe in telling lies. Besides, what are you hoping to accomplish?"

Innocently, Coco placed her index finger against her chin while avoiding eye contact. "Well, I was hoping to learn a little more about you. We don't have to call it a date if it embarrasses you, why not call it an outing?"

Her childish antic earned her another human response from the blonde, though his face-palm proved how he felt about her.

"Wanna know how I feel?" Coco asked, getting uncomfortably close to Jaune's face.

"Not particularly." He responded, though, her sudden invasion of his personal space caught him by surprise this time. "Though, I assume you're just going to tell me regardless."

Coco's smile widened, a threatening vibe crawled viciously up the blonde's spine. Though, he showed very little reaction to Coco's shift in expression. "See, you're already starting to understand me better. Since you're sharing your thoughts, I think you're an asshole, cold, unsociable, stubborn, so much of a jerk I worry of how Velvet interacts with you, oh, and did I mention asshole?!" Her voice spiked between hostile and docile in unpredictable moments. So much so that those watching from the window wondered if they should intervene soon. Jaune's expression remained firm, though the words she bashed him with were, in some way, getting to him. He knew she'd eventually give up, now he just had to handle whatever insult she threw his way and end any further contact with Adel. He couldn't deny that Coco's determination was admirable, and the teen herself was interesting to say the least. The manner in which she insulted him was but an echo of those before her. But, like those before, Jaune would just get past this and move on.

"...but, you're Velvet's friend, so I'm gonna give you the benefit of the doubt." Her words struck a chord, in more ways than one. "Look, I don't know what kind of past you have, and honestly, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested in uncovering your secrets. Even if it takes me a while; I want to know more about you. I dunno why but there's this aura around you that just spells mystery, mischief and, for the love of Oum; something interesting." Coco took a moment to breathe in after that mouthful; she retreated from Jaune's personal space with her grin softening.

The blonde on the other hand, had no immediate words to exchange. In all the conversations he ever had, none had ever progressed to this point. Those who once followed him showed either fear or hatred towards him, none showed this kind of interest. Even the one person in Brigadier's that ever showed the slightest bit of interest in him was his second in command.

In Brigadier's, students were individually ranked, first years were all ranked initiates, only a select few achieved officer rankings by their second year. Jaune was one such student that reached an officer ranking in his second year. Each officer was allowed to choose a second in command, and was eventually placed in charge of a division of fellow classmates who were of a lower rank. Their divisions were given assignments both in and out of school, each varying in difficulty and methods.

Jaune's second in command was different to say the least, though, her interest in him was perhaps mainly out of her duty and loyalty to Brigadier's. No doubt his cold attitude towards her earned him an ill spot in her memories.

"My past..." Jaune was still finding the words to respond, his eyes were glued to the ground for a moment before eventually fixing themselves on Coco. "My past isn't something to be treated as some mystery waiting to be uncovered. If you will ever listen to anything I say then do so now; my past is something that's better left alone. I'm not trying to be mysterious; I would rather just keep that entire chapter of my life buried." His words weren't cold or condescending, which struck the young teen with a confused feeling. She wanted to see him express emotions, but she didn't expect this.

In a way, she felt guilty, though, he technically started it. In a mere instance, Jaune's stoic expression returned, shoving away any human emotion he just displayed. Unintentionally, his hands clasped his back, he felt a sting, but remained emotionless.

"Ok."

The blonde's eyes were fixed on Coco, for the second time since he first met her; with an actual serious expression.

"I won't ask, dig, bother, or even mention anything that brings up whatever it is that you want to keep to yourself. I can respect privacy, believe it or not." She finished with playful smile, though, not fully annoying the blonde. He found it hard to believe her words, though, what else was new? However, what he failed to realize was the faint grin on his lips.

"However, I still want to get to know you, and nothing you say will deter me. You've caught my interest, and that's a decision I'm not letting you or anyone change for me. The only person who is allowed to tell me when to give up on you; is moi. Ok?"

For a second, that actually sounded like a confession. But, considering the two barely met that day, Jaune disregarded that notion. He sighed, not much out of annoyance, but more of disappointment. He didn't think she'd be this stubborn; then again, it was his fault for underestimating someone he never met before. In a way, this was kind of interesting for him as well. But, he wouldn't admit it aloud.

"Fine." He gave in, completely catching those spying on them by surprise.

"Now then, back to our earlier discussion. But first, let's rephrase it." Coco was now mere centimeters away from Jaune's face. "Jaune, let's hang out together this Friday." Again, the blonde was faced with a question he had an immediate 'no' to, but before he could respond, a voice from Cinder's apartment doorway called to them.

"The food is gonna get cold if you stand there talking all night." The complex manager was standing in her doorway with an uncomfortable smile. "If you kids would be so kind, I'd like to have a nice warm dinner." Her eerie chipper tone, along with the manner in which she tilted her head sent a massive chill up both Jaune and Coco's spine. While Adel was confused over why she felt such fear towards the woman, the blonde knew too well. Though, as the two teens obliged, they finally noticed the still-in-shock Velvet, unable to process what her friend said. In order to Cinder's patience from thinning, Jaune leaned over to Velvet.

"Velv, let's go eat, I made your favorite today." The blonde's words broke the girl from her trance; a joyful expression overtook her as she grabbed Jaune by her arm dragging him to Cinder's room. Coco followed closely behind, smiling at how easy the blonde was able to bring Velvet back to Remnant. On another note, this was a good chance to see what kind of environment Velvet lived in, with any hope, she had a normal complex. Though, she'd soon find it, the tenants were far from her hopes.

To say the tenants were unique was an understatement, discovering Sun and Octavia also living here was surprise enough for Coco. In school, they were model students; for class B standards of course. Sun was playful but not like he was with his fellow tenants. Octavia was normally seen as a serious student, to see her act so immature wasn't something most could imagine. Yet, here they were, messing around with Jaune like older siblings would to their younger sibling, regardless if he gave no reaction to their teasing. The twins sitting across from her seemed normal enough in the beginning, though as dinner progressed, the older twin whom was named Melanie made it quite apparent she had no warm feelings for her manager, and vice versa. The younger sister, Miltiades, if Coco heard correctly, was acting as the mediator for the two women. Said manager was sitting between her and Jaune, her eyes would wander from Melanie to Coco at times. For reasons the girl couldn't fathom. Still, one thing she did notice was how much Velvet seemed to be enjoying the time being spent. From what Coco noticed, her friend was enjoying both her food and the antics her neighbors played out throughout dinner. Odd as this little 'family' was, even counting the two that wanted to kill each other, they all seemed to enjoy themselves.

"So..." Miltiade's voice gained the attention of those at the table. Though, her words seemed to be aimed towards their new arrival. "...you're a friend of Velvet correct?"

"Uh...yes, I am. My name is..."

"Coco Adel, ranked third in Beacon's top five Divas." Octavia recited from a notebook she barely retrieved from her pocket. "No current affiliated clubs, participated in the school's swim team her first year. Has no record of truancy or delinquency, a few minor issues with Goodwitch, though, who hasn't really? Placed in class 3A; beauty and brains. Quite the catch." She teased Jaune, whom paid her no mind. "And what a coincidence, Jaune is also in 3A." Octavia closed her notebook and smiled proudly. "There's more that I could go into..." She then shot a playful glare at Sun. "...but what we really want to know is if there's somethin going on between you and our silent blonde."

Sun nodded while retrieving his phone. "Care to explain?" He then revealed a photo of Coco with her arm interlocked with Jaune's. She did so when he first answered her with a human response, though after which, she didn't exactly leave him much chance to enjoy a quiet walk home. Melanie grinned slyly when she saw the photo, truth be told she was somewhat irritated, but she still couldn't help but admire how skilled Sun was when it came to his personal hobbies. Miltiades grinned slightly, believing Jaune actually found a friend on first day. Still, she hoped that was all they were; friends. Cinder, on the other hand, had an odd expression; almost a mixture of growing anger and false joy.

"My...kids today are so...bold." She managed to utter. "Please do tell us, where do you and Jaune stand at the moment?" Her tone seemed to be bordering on the edge. Jaune wasn't the only one to notice, although, he too didn't want to interfere for the hope that things wouldn't get out of hand due to a misunderstanding. Of course, he underestimated Coco once again.

"I'm interested in him." Coco replied; silencing the whole room. "I tried asking him out, but he shot me down in an instant." As the group sighed in relief, the girl reignited with. "But, I'm not gonna give up that easily." Although her words had a separate meaning, only the manager misunderstood the situation and showed no intention of calming down.

As if snapped, Cinder instinctively grabbed Jaune and buried his face in her chest, locking him tightly against her. "I refuse! Momma won't stand for this! No, I'm not ready to give him away yet!"

'M-momma?! She's his...?' Coco didn't notice the possibility that this woman was…but then, why would he call her by her last name? As her mind swam with more questions she, unlike those around her, noticed the suffocating blonde.

"Fall, you're being too loud." Miltiades noted.

"And she's not even drinking yet." Melanie joked. "That's gotta be a new one."

"So does that mean we can't give her booze tonight?" Octavia asked with a bottle already in hand.

"W-wait...S-so, she's his...?" Coco's question was interrupted by, surprisingly, the whole group in unison.

"No, she just acts like she is."

Melanie then easily removed the blonde from the manager's grip, allowing the boy to breathe in for a good moment. "But, she is overprotective of him, and wouldn't you know it; he's been here longer than any of us. Cinder's first tenant...not to mention, she practically raised him too...so, in a way; she is like a mother." The older twin showed much disdain for the words she uttered.

So, the blonde was closer to his manager than his own family, but then remained the question; how long had Jaune been living here? When her gaze returned to the manager, the woman was smiling proudly as Melanie told of how Cinder was a mother figure for the young blonde.

"Of course it's kind of odd when you realize that she also flirts with him." Melanie's addition to her earlier statement was made with an eerie expression aimed at her manager. "I mean seriously, what kind of mom wants to sleep with her son? This isn't some fictional novel or an erotic cliché manga. The woman gets drunk on almost all of her dates, speaking of which she was a terrible taste in men. Her little black book is heavier than an Atlesian Encyclopedia. She's messy, obscene, spends almost all of her time doing nothing but watch soap operas. The only reason we haven't moved is because we don't trust Fall around Jaune."

By now, the murderous aura between Melanie and Cinder began to suffocate the tenants. With this much tension between them, Coco wondered how these two haven't gone off the deep end already.

"Enough, both of you." Jaune's intervention didn't come as a surprise for the tenants, but his tone sided more on the side of annoyance than usual. "We have a guest; can we just have a peaceful dinner? You can kill each other later."

The two women gave each other one last dirty glare before returning to their meal. After which, Jaune redirected his glare towards Octavia and Sun, both of whom jumped a little when he did. "After dinner, we're going to have to have a little chat about your hobbies. Both of you." The two teens nodded their heads without argument; the faint fear in their eyes could be seen as they pictured the long lecture the blonde would give them after this. Miltiades and Velvet showed pleased smiles, only Coco felt a bit surprised. In a complex with this unpredictable bunch, she didn't expect there to be any mediator. If it came down to Miltiades and Velvet unable to calm their neighbors, the blonde stepped in. And it would appear his simple method was effective.

Later on into the night, Jaune sitting beside Velvet and Coco in the bunny girl's room. Both Cinder and Melanie were passed out drunk, thanks to Octavia and Sun. Said pair was currently in their respective rooms getting ready for next day. Miltiades was currently knocked out after having to clean up after her sister. While he didn't have a problem spending time with Velvet, there was a new book he acquired that he intended to start today. Although, it goes without saying; he wasn't exactly keen on allowing Velvet to pull another all-nighter on a school night.

Unsurprisingly, she pulled out a few games she recently bought. One of which was Grimm Souls 3, a series she seemed to be quite fond of. This one, on the other hand, was rumored to send people into a rage due to its 'unique' gameplay. No assistance in the beginning levels, no instant saves, and annoying enemies.

"Do you guys want to play a game?" Velvet asked while offering the controller, though, she knew her friends weren't the same level of gamers she was.

"I'll give it a try." Jaune accepted, wondering all the while if this game truly was a rage creator.

"I'm next." Coco leaned over Velvet as Jaune began with the bunny girl's character. "Mind sharing some cheats?" She whispered

"That's not fair though." Velvet responded

"Think of it as gathering Intel." Coco insisted, nudging Velvet's cheeks playfully. Both unaware that Jaune had already begun. Or rather, encountered his first enemies. Like the rumors, there weren't any form of tutorials or guides. And within a matter of minutes, he died. The blonde took a deep breath and exhaled calmly. "Well, that was unexpected." He commented, handing the control to Coco.

"Betcha I get farther ahead." With immense confidence, the teen rushed into battle, which, unsurprisingly, earned her a barrage of arrows within the first few seconds. Her eyes twitched momentarily before reluctantly and quietly passing the control to the blonde. It was amusing to watch, in a way, but for the sake of respect, both Jaune and Velvet kept quiet. The control passed back and forth between Jaune and Coco, both seemed on the edge each time they died. Though, they both appeared to be getting better each time. Jaune didn't rush into battle, but his style was mainly one-hit kills. While his attacks did keep a single enemy at bay, dealing with multiple targets all rushing at once forced him to strategize. Coco liked to attack from a distance, not to mention how much she enjoyed rushing into battle. While playing, she still attacked from a distance, but was more cautious than before.

In the end, regardless of the progress they made, neither wanted to continue after being thoroughly decimated countless times by the first boss. The creature was some form of lizard, wielding a huge axe. Regardless of its size, it seemed to be quite agile when moving and swinging its weapon. To think Velvet was able to defeat it, but, that's a master gamer. Said bunny girl payed for a while, unlike her friends, she did openly show a bit of rage when continuing in her saved file. As if a switch was flipped, Velvet's entire attitude changed, and not for the better.

"C'mon you fucking game!" Both Coco and Jaune couldn't admit to ever seeing this version of Velvet before, it was both hilarious and adorable to a degree. The bunny girl hated losing, and these quick deaths were now forcing her over the edge.

The finishing touch to her rage was, by far the most humiliating, a bucket dropping on her character's head, killing her instantly. It might've been a glitch, but she had yet to reach a save point, leaving her to start from a level she worked her hardest to pass. Then again, why this game had buckets with physics was nothing short of pointless. Her ears drooped; she stood up instantly and threw her control in a fit. "Fuck this game!" Remarkably, the item was able to withstand such an attack, which was more than what could be said for Velvet's pride. She sat back down and lay over her table. "It's just not fair!" And right she was, even for non-gamers, this was really depressing. Though, if she continued like this, no doubt she'd eventually break something, or herself. Jaune turned off the tv and began putting away Velvet's games. The blonde turned to Coco "Mind getting her ready for bed?" He asked. Coco nodded and proceeded to help her friend up. She resisted at first, but Velvet eventually gave in.

After making sure their bunny friend was asleep, Coco was smiling widely as the blonde was walking her to the nearest transit stop. It wasn't far from the complex, but the area wasn't exactly a safe place to roam at this time of night. Surprisingly, though, their walk wasn't filled with questions or invasions of personal space. Instead, Coco was silent, which kept Jaune wondering whether she had something planned. As they reached the transit stop, a bus was already nearing. The two waited patiently, whilst Coco began humming softly to herself. She turned to the blonde with an innocent grin.

"You know, you surprised me tonight. You sure knew how to handle your manager and neighbor pretty well. Guess now I know who Velvet means when she talks about her complex's 'big brother'. I don't know about your manager or the other tenants, but I do know Velvet is lucky to have you. And, when you're not being a total ass, you're actually…nice." Her compliment, unlike her others, didn't fall completely on empty ears. Though, she was referring to the moment where Velvet's rage forced her to rage quit, leaving Jaune with the decision to clean up after her. Still, Jaune took it nonetheless.

"Unsociable, eh, Miltia?" The Blonde muttered under his breath. Catching the attention of the teen with him, though there was another question she had in mind to ask.

"You never did answer my question? Do you want to hang out with me this Friday?"

Jaune had hoped that this conversation was dropped, but it would appear he underestimated her ability to remember conversation topics that best suited her. While Jaune's initial response was a 'no', he found himself unable to answer. He had no intimate or friendly feelings towards Adel, but she was an interesting person nonetheless. Before getting a chance to answer, the bus stopped in front of them. As Coco was boarding, she turned to the blonde and got close to his face again, so much for respecting personal space. While the blonde believed she was just going to tease him again, what occurred next shocked him; Coco gave him a peck on his cheek.

"It's fine if you don't have an answer right now, we still have four days. See you at school tomorrow." Adel smiled proudly as the doors to the bus closed, leaving Jaune with the need to cover his face. She got him, if her intention was to get another 'human' reaction from her teasing; she sure as hell got it. If only for a single second, Jaune let his guard down, and something like this happens. Lucky for him, no one was around to see this. Then again, his luck never was on good terms with him. As he made his way back to the complex, awaiting him by the street corner was his manager. The woman sported a sly smile as the blonde was trying to fast walk past her. As he was about to make a mad dash, a deathly grip caught his shirt's collar keeping him in place.

"So bold." Cinder commented; her eyes shut while currently smiling widely. Though, the blonde could see past her false expression of joy. "Jaune, it's such a beautiful night, walk with me." Having no say regardless, the blonde walked with his manager. The two were circling the neighborhood around the complex, thankfully, for one of them; the roads were empty at this time. The two had an uncomfortable amount of silence before Cinder began speaking. "So tell me…" her words were anything but comforting, although, having been raised by her, he knew how she was when pulling her antics whether intoxicated or not. But, her death grips were perhaps the one trait of hers that he preferred not to irritate. "What did you think of your first day in Beacon?" Cinder's stopped walking, her tone shifted back to a serious note. "Do you think you'll be able to adjust?"

Jaune gave it some thought, after all, there were other schools that had similar education styles and rules that Brigadier's had. If he wanted, the blonde could've easily transferred to Atlas. After all, General Ironwood was always present during the end of the year exams to fish for students who were expelled due to failing their exam. An actual transfer student would get an instant acceptance from the General, not to mention an intense interrogation when taking into account Jaune's rank prior to leaving. However, he chose Beacon for a reason; he was tired of the military. Of all the people in his life, only Fall knew what it was like to have a future already planned out. And while he'd never say it openly, Cinder was like an older sister to him, an actually sister; strict, but also tolerant and lively. Everything that occurred that day; from his meeting with Ozpin to Coco's teasing, Jaune didn't think he would adjust so easily. Nothing was set and planned, no drills, no constant maturity.

In a way, it was refreshing to experience something new, but not so quickly. Granted, this was his first day, the boy spent the majority of his time alone or with Velvet. While he preferred being on his own, if the blonde was ever going to prove _him_ wrong, he needed to open up. As a human, even he could understand that basic concept, but with the emotional and physical scars he was given prior to attending Beacon, being 'friendly' wasn't something he could easily pull off with strangers.

After giving it some thought, Jaune gave a stoic glance to Cinder and responded. "I'll manage." And with that, the woman was satisfied, though, their conversation was far from over after that little incident she witnessed at the station. If these teens weren't going to let her live down her exes, she sure as hell wouldn't let this stoic boy forget this moment anytime soon.

Although, one thing Jaune never took into account in all of this; those he left behind at Brigadier's. While he was never on good terms with the other now 3rd year officers, there were two he had respectable conversations with. Well, one actually conversed with him, the other kept quiet most of the time. Granted, their interactions served only to achieve certain means to an end, neither saw each other as 'friends'. Adding to the list was his second in command; someone who, unbeknownst to him, had a personal issue to settle just before he left. With him gone, either she would move on, or the year was going to play out to Coco's wishes for 'excitement'.

 **-Next morning-**

Standing before the gates of Beacon, a lone figure stood glaring at the sight of the school and its students. Some returned the gesture, others whispered loudly at the sight of her Brigadier's uniform. Her body language displayed a sense of strict teachings and rigorous training. Short Navy blue hair, dark skin, a gold oval in the center of her forehead surrounded by four smaller circles. She wore the traditional female Brigadier's uniform with a few additions of her own; a blue beret and black elbow-length fingerless gloves. The silver name tag on her uniform read; _Ciel Soleil_. Her slim figure, however, gave off the impression she was perhaps weak; something one should never do if given the time to know who she really was. Though, the reason she was here was not to pick a fight, regardless of how much she wanted to. The sole reason she was here was to, in her mind, bring some sense back to her former leader and get him to return to Brigadier's Common. When she heard of his transfer, at first, she believed it to be a jest of her peers to taunt her for what occurred during the recent yearly exam. But when she discovered the truth behind their words, when she and her classmates were forced to watch what was done to their former classmate, it surprised most of them that he held on to any form of sanity. Not her, however, she still believed he was the same blonde she trained with during her first year. Which is why she made it her personal mission to bring him back to where he belonged; to Brigadier's. The sight of this school angered her; she wondered what was going through her former leader's mind to succumb to attending this place. As of now, she couldn't let this stand. With an unchanging stiff expression she took a deep breath and began her search.

"I'm coming to take you home, Major."

 **And done! A new chapter finished. I'm hoping you are all having a wonderful summer; I, on the other hand, am stuck in a building with no AC. Still, it could be worse. Anyway, thank you all for reading, I'm hoping this chapter didn't disappoint. With the summer classes going on I probably won't be able to post a new chapter as I have other stories to continue as well, but I will continue this one soon. Until next time!**


	3. New Friends

As students of 3A chatted amongst themselves before class, a single blonde walked in quietly, and sat alone at his desk. While he was the new student, no one seemed to pay him any mind. Although, Jaune's thoughts were focused on the night before, the sight of Cinder pissed wasn't anything new, it was how she dealt with her anger that worried him. The blonde's arms where aching after being locked in a hold several times. His manager enjoyed releasing her anger through wrestling others, and since the blonde and she were the only ones with military training, he was the one partner who could last longer. Granted, he wasn't an excellent fighter, and he had no interest in fighting regardless, all he did was take the pain.

Taking this moment to look over his notes, Jaune began rereading the lecture Goodwitch wrote the day prior. Whilst studying, a smiling teen leaned over the unsuspecting blonde and whispered in his ear. "Morning~"

With a massive chill slithering up his spine, the blonde jumped almost instantly. His eyes met the unknown, groaning at the fact that he didn't see this coming. Coco sure did have a way of creeping up on people; her peers knew this, but to think she'd actually try it in the newcomer.

"Miss me?" She asked.

The blonde sat back down and resumed studying his notes. "Not particularly." He responded. From the corner of his lips, unbeknownst to him, a faint grin formed. Unluckily for him, Coco noticed.

"Aw, you did miss me." The teen was now slumped over the blonde with her face unbelievably close to his. Onlookers gazed upon their interaction with a variety of emotions; from embarrassment to envy. For some, it was quite the surprise; Coco wasn't usually this close to anyone except Scarlatina. Not to mention, she was either quiet or complaining about being bored. The blonde was still a mystery, but from the expression he was giving; he didn't enjoy having his personal space invaded.

"Get off me, Adel." Jaune muttered. To which, her response was a tightening grip to his head, forcing him to face her empty expression.

"Jaune, friends call each other by their first names." She warned with her grip tightening by the second.

"At what point did we become friends?" For a second, the whole class was silent with the he atmosphere turning ice cold. Coco's grin returned, though it sent shivers up the spines of her fellow classmates. Though, unlike the others, Jaune showed no reaction to her threat, seeing as how he experienced this little strategy of hers already. While she gave the blonde an empty smile, he returned the gesture with a faint glare.

"Jaune, say my name." Coco was getting closer to his face, though the blonde didn't waver; rather, he showed no reaction. He faced worse threats, one of which was last night because of her little stunt. Although, underestimating her wasn't exactly an idea he had planned, considering how she played around with the situation of her 'confession'.

As the blonde was busy using a free hand to push Coco's face away from his, he used the other to keep his notes steady. The girl was indeed fighting back, and it seemed she was gaining ground when a gentle voice called to them. "Excuse me." Both of their heads jerked to the source of the voice, they found a pair of green orbs gazing upon them. "I'm sorry to interrupt your...'fun', but I feel the need to introduce myself to you seeing as how this is your first year attending Beacon." Her words were now directed to the blonde. "My name is Pyrrha Nikos, I'm the student body president." The red-haired teen's introduction fell on empty ears as the blonde ignored her introduction by using the distraction to gain a better hand at repelling Coco. However, anticipating he'd use the distraction, Coco managed to get passed Jaune's little 'barrier' and slump over him again.

"Umm..." After failing to repel Adel, both teens glanced towards Pyrrha, Gandalf to feel like a third-wheel in this situation. "...as I was saying, I feel that as the student president I should show you around the school. Maybe during break I could give you a tour?" She offered with friendly smile.

Before the blonde could respond, a hand pressed his head down unto the table. "That's not necessary, I'll show him around. After all, shouldn't the prez be busy closing down clubs." Coco leaned over towards Nikos with an empty smile.

"It's the president's duty to assure the students are familiar and able to access the school's available facilities. And are you seriously still holding onto that? I told you before; you failed to meet the requirements so I had no choice." Pyrrha argued. "Maybe if you weren't so pushy, people would've actually joined."

Coco's grip intensified on Jaune's head, causing the boy to jump. "Hey!" Coco released her hold after realizing how much pressure she placed on him.

Though, she smiled and lightly placed her hand against her mouth. "Oh, sorry about that, forgot you were down there." Her apology, like most of her smiles today, felt empty, leaving the blonde to respond in a manner he normally suppressed.

"You forgot?! Hell, if this is how you treat your 'friends' I'd love to see how you treat your enemies." His reaction came as quite the surprise for Coco, but, it wasn't without benefit, especially with the little detail he slipped in his little rant.

"Friends? I'm guessing she didn't exactly give you a choice in the matter, did she? Believe me, you're not the only one." Pyrrha commented.

The room fell silent as the blonde's anger quickly calmed down after seeing Coco lower her head, her short hair managed to partially cover her face. She had no comeback or retort to throw back at the president's words. For a minute, Coco remained silent, that is, until her head turned towards Pyrrha, her eyes glared at the red-head with a burning passion.

"If you want, Jaune..." Her words dripped with venom. "...I can show you." She offered, referring to his statement of different treatments for enemies and friends.

The two teens were glaring at one another; the uneasy atmosphere could be felt in the entire classroom.

All but Jaune remained firm as if at any moment one of them would snap. Going through the blonde's mind was a simple sentence that best summed up the thoughts of the observers. _'This escalated way too quickly.'_

Meanwhile, continuing her search, Ciel found herself utterly lost after walking through the third year hallways for the third time. Waiting by the front gate would've been a better plan, but knowing her former leader, he usually arrived to class early. And yet, she couldn't find third year class A, the fourth years were on the third floor, first years on the ground floor, but the second and third years shared the second floor, which would've been easy to navigate if their home room numbers weren't mixed. As she was to turn the corner, she noticed an incoming student running at top speed and quickly backed away. The student, sadly, having seen Ciel, tried quickly to slow down but ended up tripping and falling in front of the BC student. As she fell, her books fell out of her backpack and scattered across the floor. Just from looking at her, Ciel already made the assumption that she was a first year, possibly in one of the average classes. But, why was a first year on the second floor when their classes on the ground floor? The first years were more clumsy and dim than what she anticipated, but, then again; first years. Did she really expect much from them?

"Ow." Was the girl's first reaction to hitting the ground. "Dust. I missed the first day, and now I'm gonna be late on the second." She groaned. As she raised her head, she noticed the BC student towering over her. Among other things, there was one little detail the beacon student allowed slip. "Huh, white."

Without missing a heartbeat, Ciel closed her legs and instinctively raised a fist for a single strike.

The young girl instantly covered her head and waited. She didn't try to fight back or defend herself, she just waited. And yet, nothing happened. When she glanced up to the unknown student, she found a hand offering to help her up. Ciel still had a frown from her little slip, but showed no intent to harm her.

"Umm..." The girl questioned this sudden shift, but accepted the BC student's offer nonetheless. "Thanks...Ms...?"

"Sergeant Ciel Soleil, third year, Brigadier's Common." Ciel introduced herself with the standard Brigadier's salute and rank designation.

In a mere second, the young teen was gleaming at Ciel. "You're a Brigadier student?! That is soooooo cooool! Oh! Uh...It's nice to meet you, my name's Ruby Rose. I applied to Brigadier's this year, but I was rejected because I failed the physical exam. Turns out being light on my feet isn't enough." She shrugged with a faint chuckle. "But, that's not a problem 'cause I got accepted here, and my sister attends here too. I'm really sorry I bumped into you, it's just that I missed the first day of school and after what I heard about my homeroom teacher I got really scared about actually coming..." Ruby stopped midway through her rant when she noticed the BC student gathering the rest of the scattered books from the floor and handing them over to her.

"Sounds lovely, but I'm a bit preoccupied at the moment. So, if you'll excuse." Ciel hoped to end her conversation with this kid quickly, if not, she'd be standing all day listening to the girl rant.

"Oh, maybe I can help." Ruby offered, hoping to return the favor. Though, she received a stoic expression from the BC student.

"Thanks, but I doubt a first year will be much help." She dismissed the young teens offer and was about to continue her search when Ruby tilted her head.

"But I'm a third year."

Ciel stopped in her tracks and took her sweet time allowing that little piece of information to sink in. She slowly turned to Ruby with a lightened expression. "Lying isn't a good virtue for a young maiden to have."

The young teen, rather than pout or yell like she normally would, reached into her backpack and retrieved a slip, presenting it without further words to utter. Ciel took the document and read it, to her surprise and shock; Ruby Rose, third year class A; 15 years of age. To think such a young girl was in the third year class, and if Beacon ranked its students the way Brigadier's did, this child would be in the top class of her year. Attached to the first document were Rose's scores from her entrance exam for Brigadier's. The physical scores were extremely poor, but what caught Ciel's attention was the academic score.

Her hands trembled as she attempted to say the words aloud. "Y-y-you scored a 600 on the academic portion?"

Ruby tilted her head innocently. "Yea...is it a big deal?"

Soleil's eyes twitched as she attempted to accept what she just read. "Oh, no, it's not such a big deal. I mean, 600 on the academic portion is technically a near perfect score..." Her sarcasm was masked only by her tightly gritted teeth. Normally, students with this kind of score would gain a sure acceptance into BC, however, students were required to pass both the Physical and Academic sections, failing one was the same as failing both.

"Oh, really? They didn't tell me that, but I guess that's probably why the lady in admissions told me; it's a shame darling." Ruby played out her best impression, though, judging by the look on the teen's expression, she wasn't exactly in a pleasant mood. She continued to clutch the document. Remembering her own scores from her admission test.

Soleil sighed and gave the slip back to the young teen while muttering to herself. "This would've given the major a run for his..." It was then that she remembered her reason for coming to this school. The person she came to find would be a third year as well, and if this school really did rank students, then no doubt the Major would be in the same class as this child. "Ms. Rose, was it? It would seem I do require your assistance. Would you mind showing me to your class?"

Without questioning why a BC student was even in Beacon, she nodded and proceeded towards class 3A. All the while, unaware of a pair of eyes peering from around the corner.

Velvet had heard the rumors of a Brigadier's student wandering about the campus, and without thinking she left her class to search for this student. When she finally found her, she recognized the uniform style; an enlisted's attire. Something similar to what Jaune would've worn if he stayed at BC. If this girl was here for him, then there were two scenarios that would play out; either she had a personal issue to settle with him, or worse: she came to taunt Jaune, to remind him of the failure that eventually led to him breaking down. And after what Jaune had to endure before leaving BC, Velvet wasn't about to let her friend suffer anymore humiliation and pain.

Class 3A

Jaune was between two teens with the urge to go all out, luckily for him; Coco didn't seem like the kind of person to start a fight. But then again, she did manage to surprise him by proving most of his assumptions wrong, and so far not in a good way. Although, his interest in this situation died out quickly, Jaune resumed studying. As the two were nearing the point of snapping, the door to the class slid open quickly and loudly. All eyes, except Jaune's, were now directed towards the door. The blonde believed Goodwitch had caught wind of the issue between these two and came, though, again his assumptions were shattered as a pair of footsteps made their way calmly through the whispers of Beacon students, stopping in front of his desk, ignoring the two teens next to him. The unknown remained in front of him until Jaune noticed a navy blue skirt, glancing slowly upward he saw the unmistakable Brigadier's white and teal striped blazer. Last was the intense glare coming from his former subordinate, his second-in command when he still held a position of power in BC. He didn't expect to see her so soon, but then, Ciel was always impulsive. Not to mention, she never did like to hold off any business she could quickly settle. Her glare was more than enough to tell what her initial intention was.

Subtly, she gestured toward the door. Jaune nodded, and proceeded to follow Ciel. The students in the halls all gazed in confusion as a BC student and the third year transfer student walked towards the roof. It wasn't much of a walk considering the staircase to the roof was two doors away from class 3A. But, if anything, it was a rarity, and no one knew what would occur, given the rivalry between the two schools. Many believed the blonde would have enough common sense to not start a fight on the second day of school. Then again, no one knew what sort of relationship the two students had.

On the roof, Ciel took a moment to compose herself before turning to face her former leader, though, she showed a momentary saddened expression before intensifying her glare. Ciel walked slowly towards the blonde, he stood firmly expecting her to be furious with him; a punch or slap was probably coming his way. After all, what kind of subordinate would be proud of a leader as shameful as him? She must've come to chew him out for his actions and maybe curse him for choosing to be his second in command. In all honesty, if Jaune ever saw anyone in Brigadier's as a friend, Ciel was always the first to come to mind. Mainly because their interactions were based on mutual respect and admiration.

Unlike most of the other second-in commands, Ciel wasn't an officer. Commonly, second year officers were given the chance to choose lower ranked officers as their second-in command, however, Jaune choose Ciel; an enlisted. While this decision was challenged by other officers and instructors, the headmistress allowed it on the basis that it would be 'interesting'.

"I assume you have an idea as to why I am here." Ciel's tone was as cold as her glare. "But just to clarify; as of now, there are three matters I have to address."

Considering the fact that Jaune was no longer the leader of his division, Ciel was either placed as the temporary leader, or the blonde was replaced quickly and Ciel demoted. A demotion had the same feeling of earning a failing grade on the yearly exam. If she was demoted, then her pride demanded restitution. It was as Ozpin said; students in Beacon, unlike those of BC, have non-military futures ahead of them. That demotion would've surely stained her record, should she attempt to further her career in whatever military she chooses to serve.

The blonde could see the girl's fists tightening as she approached him, bracing himself for what was to come, Jaune steadied himself.

Once Ciel was within a good distance, her pace increased quickly into a full on sprint. She raised her fist and aimed directly at the blonde's head. Within a few seconds, the blonde evaded. However, paying sole attention to the danger above, he failed to notice Ciel's leg swipe him down. The blonde fell hard, towering over him was his former subordinate with an eased glare, though, that would soon end with a small comment the blonde couldn't help but utter.

"So white this time?"

With a deepened blush, Ciel raised her foot and stomped on the blonde.

Those from the stairway; Coco, Velvet, Ruby, and Pyrrha felt somewhat bad for the blonde. Ruby, on the other hand, felt lucky Ciel didn't go through with her attack the first time they met. Though, there was something the blonde said that caught their attention; the fact that his reaction to seeing Ciel's undergarments indicated this wasn't the first time. At the moment, the small group continued to watch as Ciel relentlessly stomped on her former leader with increasing vigor, all with a minor blush and angered expression.

After believing her message was understood, Ciel recomposed herself a few feet away from the blonde. Jaune, however, arose with his cloths tattered, covered in dust, and with his usual stoic expression.

"How many times has it been now, sergeant?" Jaune asked while dusting off his blazer.

"..." The girl remained silent.

"The first time was light blue, the second was peach, the third..." The blonde was cut short as he evaded a fist. It followed with countless more attempts, giving the blonde satisfaction in both the knowledge that his practice in evasion paid off and he trained long enough beside his sergeant that he could vaguely predict her attacks. Her fighting style was always hand-to-hand, thus giving the blonde a strategy to avoid fighting her.

Ciel was one of the best of BC when it came to physical combat, but at the moment her moves were extremely predictable, meaning this fight wasn't so much out of anger, but rather, it felt like a test in the sense that if Ciel went all out, the fight would've been over the first time around. While the blonde would point out that it was normal for her to just leap into a fight, it still left him with the question of why she was here.

After continuously avoiding her attacks, the BC student showed signs of tiring, quickly.

"Fighting isn't your strong suit...so you avoid me until I tire. I'm not surprised; you never were a combat soldier. However, I am impressed; even after leaving; you're still able to avoid my fists." Ciel stopped just a few feet away from Jaune, she panted softly while her expression showed great irritation for not being able to land a single punch.

"Glad to know I haven't lost some of my touch...although, I can't say the same for your boots. But I'm afraid I can't indulge you for long, classes are going to start soon so I'd prefer if you could make this quick." His tone was as strict and cold as ever, in a way, it gave Ciel some comfort to see that some aspects of her leader remained. If that was the case, then that meant he would still be able to return to his position. Her mission perhaps wouldn't be in vain.

She removed her beret and lowered her head enough that her hair partially covered her face. "Major Jaune Arc, please return to Brigadier's...please, come home, sir. Come back and lead Division five again."

The blonde was confused, immensely. Did she not know what he did? Was she denying it? If he ever chose to return to Brigadier's, not only would he be falling back into the hands of his father, he would be returning to a school that, firstly; praised him for something that went against the school's moral ethics. And then, they shunned him for calling the school out on its hypocrisy. They, who called the incident an 'accident' and later place the blame solely on him, would never welcome him back with open minds. No, he couldn't return to that. Although he was still confused as to why Ciel wanted him to return, considering how stubborn she usually was, he needed to make sure she understood his refusal.

From the doorway, the little revelation of the blonde's former school left all but one understandably curious and surprised. While Pyrrha and Ruby had no knowledge of the blonde personally, they still found it hard to believe that a Brigadier's student actually transferred from the school to Beacon. Coco, now finally knowing what the blonde's former school was, began wondering why he left in the first place. Though, the bigger problem presented was this former BC classmate of Jaune's asking him to go back. Velvet, having known what transpired that made Jaune transfer, worried about whether he would. Even if he hated that school, he still had a sense of pride that wouldn't allow him to take a defeat so easily. If provoked, he would actually return just to make a point. On top of that, there was the chance this girl was the same one he used to talk about.

"No."

Jaune responded, bluntly. Causing Ciel's head to jerk up. "I made my decision the minute I signed my name on the transfer documents; I'm done with Brigadier's. After the manner in which the headmistress handled the situation with...the rook; I openly questioned everything 'she' taught us. And for that, I was ostracized. If I return, there's no guarantee I'll be given my old rank or placed in division five. Regardless, I'm glad to no longer be a part of that school."

"Y-y-you can't be serious?! How could one of Brigadier's highest ranking officers say such a thing?! You were one of the top five, and in my opinion, better than those above you." The blonde showed no reaction to her words, but rather, attempted to cross his arms before hissing softly. It took Ciel a few seconds to think of a reason that her former leader refused to return. "I...I was called by the headmistress to attend your discharge, they had no right to put you through that. I would've done something, but we were told to stand down. I understand that you're furious with 'her', but the Major I know wouldn't have let his failure bring him down. How could you settle for...this!?" Ciel gestured to the whole of Beacon. Her voice rose to a tone that she rarely allowed with Jaune.

Said blonde was surprised to see this side of her, but he had no interest indulging in her attempt to take him back to Brigadier's. Either she lost her position and wanted it back...or she actually cared. Although, given the mindset of Brigadier's; students often did whatever was possible to achieve victory while also keeping in mind to follow certain strict protocols. He remembered his Sergeant as a strict and uptight person with the occasional short temper. Occasionally, she did show a relaxed and mellow personality around the other members of her division, but never her Major. Their interactions might've been close to a kind of friendship, but with the cold attitude he always gave her, no doubt Ciel wouldn't count him as a friend; only a means to an end.

With a stoic expression, the blonde responded to her question. "I haven't settled for anything. If anything, far from it." He was trying his best to keep his emotions at bay.

"T-then..."

"Believe me, Beacon isn't anything like Brigadier's. The events that've occurred recently aren't something I'm used to. The class structures were confusing, the headmaster is a little unorthodox, and that's little of what I can say for the students; the people are immature, nosy, loud, unorganized, and arrogant in their stupidity. To top it all off, the one person who actually reached out to me is…annoying and confusing, for lack of a better word. I'm still wondering how it is I can tolerate her." Ciel twitched when the word 'her' left Jaune's mouth. From the door to the roof, Coco's grip on the door rail tightened to the point of slightly cracking it. "There was just too much for me to handle that I actually felt like transferring back to Brigadier's."

"Then why..."

"Let me finish. However, when it comes down to it, it's not all bad. It's not what I'm used to, but I'm willing to try to adapt to Beacon. Still, whether I can or not doesn't matter; I'm never going back to Brigadier's, and no one is going to convince me otherwise. So save yourself the trouble and don't ask me to go back. Besides, they showed me pretty clearly what they thought of me. And if you think I'm just going to easily bow my head to 'her'...then you never knew me at all." The sudden raise of his voice startled both Ciel and those spying on them from the doorway. The very thought of 'her' was beginning to infuriate the blonde, so much so that he found it harder to control his emotions.

"Permission to speak freely, Major." Ciel's rigid training kicked in as she addressed her former leader.

"What's stopping you? There wasn't an issue up until now." Jaune remarked. Although, Ciel remained silent, waiting for him to address her officially. While her stubbornness and dedication were admirable, the blonde was more irritated that his message still didn't get through to her. And she continued to use the honorifics, another piece of his memory he would've rather forgotten. For a minute, she remained firm, waiting for him to respond to her request.

Sighing, annoyingly "Granted." Jaune responded.

"I never made the cut for becoming an officer, the instructors always told me; I was more brawn than brains. The officers always held their damned noses high, as if their ranks proved how valuable they were compared to the enlisted. None of them would've given me the light of day, but you, you chose me, not for my rank, but because you said you trusted me more than any of the officers. I always made it my priority to accompany you on our assignments, always trying to prove myself to you and even if I messed up, you never replaced me like the other division leaders would have. You placed your trust in me regardless of my fails, and even now I've done nothing to betray your trust. Yes, you were an asshole, rude, blunt, often egotistic. But, I was proud to call you my Major. When I heard you left, I thought it was just a stupid rumor. I waited for you...I waited so I could prove that my Major wouldn't allow himself to crumble...that he was every bit of the man I met during the entrance exam." Ciel began shaking. "Why would you leave without at the very least talking to me?...Would my words have meant nothing to you?"

Jaune felt a small weight of guilt come down on him for unleashing his anger on Ciel. At first, he assumed she merely wanted to regain her pride or gain a higher position, but now, he just stepped over her as if she were the source of his anger. She wasn't, and to a certain degree, Jaune did care about her. Surprisingly. He was so used to bottling it all up and dodging certain questions, but if just a little slipped out, he wouldn't be able to stop himself.

Normally, he could care less if he insulted or degraded someone, but if it was towards someone close to him; it left him with an aching feeling in his chest. Something he wasn't accustomed to. Normally, he'd just shrug this feeling, but, a nudging conscious wouldn't let him.

"Sergea...Ciel." Rather than acting as her commander, the blonde took a different route, one that would have them on equal grounds rather than seeing one another as commander-subordinate. Ciel on the other hand was caught off guard, never once had Jaune ever called her by her name, even when he asked her to join him, he always used her rank.

"I'm...sorry." Jaune found it hard to apologize, not mainly for of his pride, but due to the fact that he wasn't sure if Ciel would accept his apology after what he just said.

Almost in an instant, Ciel began to question whether this was really the same Major, the stoic aspect was still there, but this softer side of him was something she thought he rid himself of long ago. She remembered a strict, sarcastic, and mature soldier, not a soft-hearted stoic. Granted, it wasn't unwanted, but it was a change that came about unprecedented. At least to her knowledge of course.

Seeing as she wasn't responding, the blonde continued. "I shouldn't have said what I did. Of all the people I've ever spoken to in Brigadier's, I've never shared more with anyone than I did with you. I valued you, not just as my sergeant, but...also as the only person in that school I could honestly call my friend. To be honest; It never came to mind that you would've seen me as anything more than your leader. I assumed because of my attitude; you probably harbored some ill sentiment towards me. It sounds odd, I know; the person I could call my friend dislikes me. But, you are important to me, don't ever doubt that."

Ciel kept staring at her former leader, she found it hard to imagine him ever being nice to anyone, and yet, he willingly apologized to her. Not to mention, he gave her an answer to a question she blurted in the moment. She didn't expect him to answer it, given the fact that if he didn't want to answer a question he'd just work his way around it. Though, now that he wasn't the leader of their division, he didn't need to uphold any image or hide his emotions. As if by attending this school, the blonde was slowly letting go of his militaristic training and forming a new identity, one that he intended to forge on his own accord. She couldn't deny that this side of Jaune was pleasant, to an extent. And yet...

"I'm not the best at reading people, and I'm not used to...being nice in general." The blonde admitted, showing great annoyance in acknowledging his social problem.

'Ain't that the truth.' Came a little whisper in the wind. The two were slightly confused for a moment before returning to their conversation. Meanwhile, Velvet was currently keeping her palms on Coco's mouth to keep them from being found out. Her little slip didn't come as a surprise, but it was a close call considering they were spying on two military trained teens.

"But I can see where your anger is coming from; we've been through a lot together, neither of us has had an easy time in BC. However, this was something I had to do; the simple truth of the matter is that I'm just not Brigadier material. I never was, and I never will be a soldier-puppet for that damned headmistress." The blonde opened up as much as he could, which was pretty easy since the two of them already had respect built between them. That, and there was one time Ciel opened up to him with quite an amount of pent up feelings she had against the blonde. Her words that one time were the main reason he assumed to have been in a bad light with Soleil. Considering, like him, she didn't exactly beat around the bush when it came to opinions. Still, when it came to his family, at least he didn't have to explain that mess. Though, there was one itch of curiosity that pushed him to ask. "So if you don't mind me asking; what am I to you?"

Ciel raised her head and yet she continued to stare at the pavement. She tried processing what her Major just told her. Yes; the boy was strict, an asshole most of the times even, but he still had some redeeming qualities to make up for his attitude. Though, his question was somewhat related to the third reason for her being there.

"Well, you see..." She twiddled her thumbs while trying to think of a way to get her point across. Then, she remembered what trait made Jaune stand out the most in BC. A proper response would be to return the same trait he always treated her with. On the other hand... "With an attitude and personality like yours, you sure have a unique way of treating your 'friends'. When we were initiates I saw you as one of the ones that would end up failing the yearly exam, and to my disbelief you came out as an officer. When you asked me to be your second-in command, I was surprised. And seeing how relatively weak you were, physically, I began to wonder if taking your offer was a smart move on my part." Taking Jaune's constant honesty into account, Ciel gave the blonde an honest account of her views. After all, he did prefer honesty above any form of lie. "But then, I found myself doing the same thing people did to me; I judged by what I saw. When it came to the division leaders, you were unorthodox to say the least, but you never treated us the way the other division leaders did towards their own. While the other officers would've easily replaced and demoted anyone that didn't meet their criteria, unless the situation called for it, you made us feel like we weren't expendable. Granted, you didn't leave a positive impression on everyone, but there was a great deal of respect we had for you. And for me..." She reached into her blazer's pocket and removed a folded envelope.

Those in the stairway immediately jumped to a unanimous conclusion as to how the following events would unfold. Pyrrha and Ruby blushed, having only seen these kinds of scenarios in tv dramas and books. Velvet, her only experience with this situation was in visual novels. As for Coco...

"Well, you see...that is to say..." Ciel kept her eyes from meeting her leader; she had read many genres of books and seen some flicks of her current situation, though it was a first experience for her. Her assumption was that this would be simple and quick, however, the more she tried to give Jaune the envelope, the harder it was to say anything at all, all the while she deal with how faster her heart began to beat. For a mere second, she glanced away whilst tightly clenching on to the envelope. "N-now that I think about it, classes are going to start soon, so...maybe, we could push this topic for a more appropriate location; you wouldn't mind accompanying me this Friday to the Valen Citadel, would you? I hear its construction was finished just last month, perhaps we can-" Upon attempting to meet eye to eye, she was met with a sight that instantly silenced her words, while involuntarily making her eyes twitch.

A girl with short brown hair was standing between Jaune and her, with her back faced towards Ciel. All the while, she was pulling on the blonde's cheek, said boy showed more annoyance than anything else.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but classes ARE going start soon so both of you will need to wrap this up." Her eyes then sent a chilling glare towards Ciel, though; it did little affect to deter the girl. "You don't want to get on Goodwitch's nerves again, do you, Jaune?"

With a hint of truth in her words, the blonde glanced to Ciel and gestured her to walk with him back into the building. Subtly, and with a faint expression of disappointment, the three teens began making way towards the school's entrance. The blonde was surprised to find, not only the class president 'casually' waiting on the staircase with what seemed like an underclassman, but with Velvet of all people. She must've caught wind of a BC student in Beacon and probably came to make sure he was fine. Truly, Jaune was grateful for Velvet's worry for him, but at the same time, Cinder shouldn't have shared the details of his discharge with the bunny girl. The blonde felt lucky that Velvet didn't avoid or hate him after hearing about his actions. So far, she showed more compassion and sympathy towards him.

The three students walked silently, ignoring stares from the different students as a Beacon student walked with a Brigadier's student without some form of argument occurring between the two. The BC girl walked closely behind the new transfer student, her body language showed a somewhat protective instinct as Soleil kept a fixed glare on Adel. The two teens shot mild glares at one another, the aura around them was somewhat suffocating to those who dared go close to these two. Why they seemed to dislike one another evaded the minds of those watching, even the blonde couldn't understand what was with this venomous aura around them. For one thing, they didn't even know each other, and there wasn't exactly a reason for them to be so hostile.

As they reached the gates of the school, Ciel clutched the envelope in her hand. She didn't know who the girl glaring at her was, but seemed to have no problem getting extremely close to the blonde without him brushing her away. In a way, it irritated her, but knowing Jaune; he wasn't the kind to trust others easily. So perhaps this girl and he were close in some way. At least, that was Ciel's assumption. Once they reached the front gate, Ciel walked slowly past Jaune, stopping for a brief moment to inhale deeply.

"I don't agree with your decision, nor do I believe you should remain here...but I respect your decision, sir. If you ever decided to return to Brigadier's, know you'll have someone there to stand with you." She took a quick glance at Coco, and then to her former leader. "Also, I want to make one thing clear." Ciel raised her finger high in the air before lowering down directly between Jaune's eyes. "You're MY Major! A-a-and don't ask me to drop the honorifics 'cause I won't! You made your decision, this is mine!" She declared, loudly. Her sudden declaration somewhat startled Coco, though, showed a small expression of shock. Before he could respond, an envelope was shoved against his face. Following soon after, Ciel wasted no time sprinting out of Beacon grounds, all he while hiding a small blush. The blonde watched as his friend, in an almost comedic fashion, leave with a trail of dust picking up behind her sprint.

Unbeknownst to the two students standing by the doorway, a certain blonde and redhead were looking over them from the second floor, both with mischievous smirks and their phones in hand.

Once Ciel was out of sight, Jaune examined the envelope in his hand. As he did, Coco crossed her arms and watched as the blonde curiously inspected the item in his hand.

"So, what do you think it is?" Coco asked with a hint of sass.

The blonde didn't respond, but rather, held the item high against the sun.

"It could be anything; although, considering how she was acting, my best guess is a confession letter." The blonde responded. After confirming his suspicion, Jaune he placed the piece of parchment in his blazer's right pocket, a small grin formed on his lips. Upon turning to face Coco, he noticed her with a somewhat surprised expression.

"What?"

"So...you're not denser than a rock?" Coco's question struck somewhat of a nerve, considering he knew of the cliché she was referring to.

"It's not like she had a convincing poker face; besides, you'd have to be a special kind of ignorant to not consider a confession as a possibility. Though, while I admit I find it hard to believe, it's still a small possibility I'm not going to ignore." Jaune commented before walking back to the main building.

The two students returned to their respective class, before the ring of the bell or course. Although, all eyes were now on the blonde as a rumor of his connection to Brigadier's Common spread around the student social groups. While the blonde paid no mind to the curious stares from his peers, and small glare from Goodwitch, he still couldn't help but worry over the fact that his specific rank was mentioned in the murmurs. Meaning; those who were eavesdropping on him and Ciel were spreading the rumors. Easily, the blonde scratched Velvet off, knowing full well she wouldn't stoop so low. Though, he found it hard _not_ to consider Coco a suspect, and yet, he didn't exactly have a winning streak in predicting her actions. At the moment, Coco, Pyrrha, and the silver-eyed student would've gossiped.

Thanks to loose lips, the blonde lost the chance to move on from the shame he endured as a Brigadier's officer. Even if he was counted as one of the students who failed the yearly exam, he still preferred not having the subject brought up at all.

As lunch time began, and the students made headway towards the Cafeteria.

Although, sleeping soundly atop the school's roof was the new transfer student, with no intention of listening to students gossip and stare at him. His classmates did enough of that, and without subtlety.

On the one hand, the day did have a silver lining; he had a friend outside of Beacon; Ciel. While the blonde was still unsure on where they stood exactly, considering the nature of the letter she gave him, he knew he could still trust her as he did before. As he slowly drifted, he could hear the door to the roof open. Though, the newcomer seemed to have intended a more quiet approach, however, the rust on the door's hinges, however, intended differently. The newcomer tried their best to lessen the noise from the rusty door, though, from the continuous sounds of rusted metal and the newcomer's incoherent rambling; subtlety was lost.

After eventually giving up, the blonde preferred to ignore his guest and drift back into slumber. At least that was his plan, the sound of footsteps made their way to him, stopping at his side. Reluctantly, the blonde opened a single eye, greeting him was the silver-eyed girl who was eavesdropping on him earlier.

"Hi." Her cheerful smile and friendly expression somewhat relaxed the blonde, though, there was also a possibility this child was the one who went around blabbing about his status as a former BC student. On that note, the blonde couldn't help but be amazed at how fast rumors went around in this school. It was both admiring and frightening, more so in the case of misunderstandings.

"You look comfortable. Mind if I join you?" She asked, her smile widening slightly.

"There's nothing stopping you. Have at it, hoss." Jaune replied, shutting his eye and attempting to fall back into his slumber.

"...my name is Ruby." She corrected, innocently.

"Right…'' Jaune replied, some what'd annoyed.

Ruby then proceeded to lie beside the blonde and stare at the sky. For a moment, she's didn't say a word, it gave the impression that Jaune could return to his quiet time. Again, wrong he was.

"It's really nice out here." Ruby commented, her eyes followed the passing clouds, the feeling of the wind against her face made the young student drowsy.

"…" The blonde preferred to ignore the girl.

That didn't stop the silver-eyed girl from continuing. "You know, I heard rumors about Goodwitch from my sister; she said class A's homeroom teacher would fail a student just for looking at her wrong. But, I think those rumors might've been exaggerated."

"Then maybe you shouldn't pay any mind to rumors." The blonde replied, bluntly.

For a second, Ruby took in the sudden response before softly chuckling. "I would, but my sister and her friends like to gossip, and she doesn't exactly like me talking to strangers…or guys for that matter. She's really protective of me, and I'm really shy around new people so-"

The blonde sat up and interrupted the young teen. "Wait, why are you talking to me then? We barely know each other; all we have in common is our homeroom class. On top of that; I'm a guy."

The young teen stared confusingly at him before scratching the back of her head whilst mildly blushing. "Well, we're in the same class, and you look like you have an exciting group of friends to hang around with…so…" Ruby began to twiddle her fingers. "I thought that maybe we could be friends." She looked up towards the blonde, who greeted her with a stoic expression.

"No." He quickly responded. Ruby was somewhat shocked, thinking she had been rejected a friendship, though the blonde quickly added to his response. "Adel isn't my friend, she's just an acquaintance. Ciel and Velvet are closer to me than most, and I don't intend to have an 'exciting' atmosphere around me. I don't mind if you want to come by, and I'm sure Velvet will warm up to you. To me, friendships are built…but" the blonde found himself trying to move on from his antisocial attitude, though, he found it embarrassing as the words he tried to utter felt cheesy and cliché. "…but, I wouldn't mind us being friends…" as the blonde brushed off how incredibly sappy his words felt, he noticed his classmate gleaming at him.

For Ruby, this was the first time she attempted to reach out to other people beside those her sister hangs out with. In a way, Jaune was her first friend in Beacon, as well as her first guy friend. She couldn't help but smile widely, and in a way, it was starting to unsettle Jaune.

Before the blonde could say anything else, a newcomer glomped him causing the two to fall over. The blonde wrestled with this newcomer, only to have both of his wrists restrained and a perfect view of his attacker sitting comfortably atop him with a victorious smile. "You know, for a Major, you're surprisingly weak." Coco commented while keeping a good grip on the blonde's wrists.

Feeling greatly annoyed, the blonde responded with "And for someone with a slim figure, you're surprisingly heav-" though, before he could finish, he found himself inches away from Coco's face, her grip on his wrists tightened, greatly.

"Are you sure you want to finish that?" she threatened, the blonde slowly shook his head, realizing he was about to make a mistake he once made with Fall. If the first experience taught him anything; it was to watch his comebacks, more so around Coco now.

As Ruby watched the exchange between her two classmates, another newcomer sat beside her. The first thing she noticed was the rabbit ears.

"Hi there, I'm Velvet. What's your name?" Velvet didn't seem intimidated by a newcomer, though; there wasn't much to fear when it came to appearances. Rather, she seemed rather welcoming towards Ruby.

"I'm Ruby Rose. It's nice to meet you. So, you're Jaune's friend too?" Ruby's question caught the attention of the teen atop the blonde. There weren't any indications that Jaune and Ruby knew each other prior, and yet she so casually claimed to be a friend of the blonde when said blonde still referred to her by her surname. It somewhat irritated Coco, though, she thought of a way to mess with the blonde with what occurred last night.

"Oh Jaune, you've barely met this girl and yet you place her above me?" Her voice edged on overly dramatic.

"She doesn't invade my personal space." The blonde responded, still trying to free himself from Coco's grasp.

"But, you didn't have a problem with 'personal space' when I kissed you last night." Her sudden reveal broke Velvet's train of thought. So much so that she froze in place, unable to move or process what she had just heard. Ruby blushed mildly, from a glance, she didn't think Jaune or Coco would have anything going on between them, and yet here she was proven wrong. Or so she thought. Jaune on the other hand was more annoyed than embarrassed. He didn't expect her to suddenly blurt it out in front of company. With this misunderstanding, no doubt he'd have a less quiet school life, especially if Sun or Octavia found out.

Meanwhile, in Brigadier's Common, Ciel sat alone in the female locker room. She had built up the courage to go to Beacon and search for Jaune, gotten answers and seen a side of him she never thought she'd see. And while she failed to bring him back, a much larger failure was staring at her in the face. Within her palms was a piece of parchment, her hands trembled as she realized what she had forgotten to do. Her hands gripped the letter tightly as her mind replayed the same thought since she discovered the thing in her locker.

"I forgot...to put it in the envelope."

 **And with that, Chapter three is done! Wow, this took a lot longer than I had planned, but I'm hoping it doesn't disappoint. And with Volume 4 around the corner I'm having second thoughts about riding the feels train. Seriously, you'd think that with the intro to V3 we would've seen it coming, but no.**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading. Oh, and for those wondering, yes, Grimm Souls is a parody of Dark Souls. Until next time!**


	4. Opening up

Following the misunderstanding created by Coco, Velvet managed to snap back to reality, and while Adel's words had a hint of truth in them, the bunny girl's imagination soared through different scenarios over how the night prior played out, most of which were extremely nsfw. As their lunch progress, Ruby became acquainted with Scarlatina and Adel rather quickly; Coco seemed open to accept the young teen into their little circle, though, she didn't glomp over her like she did with Jaune and Velvet, making it the only factor Jaune was faintly envious of. Velvet and Ruby connected rather quickly once the bunny girl mentioned games, after which the two seemed to lose themselves in their discussions of strategies and lore.

Jaune lay against the rooftop and hoped that this time he could actually relax. Granted, Adel was lying next to him, however, she seemed to be relaxed and silent. Odd, considering her usually display of energy. As it appeared that luck was finally on his side, the blond's eyes slowly shut, ready to embrace a somewhat quiet and peaceful lunch.

"Jaune?"

It was then that the young blond wondered why he bothered trying to sleep. His left eye opened, greeted with a shy smile from Ruby Rose.

"I was wondering if I could ask you a question." Her curious tone and innocent demeanor made it difficult to deny the young one her curiosity. With a small sigh, Jaune nodded, thus leading to her question. "Why did you leave Brigadier's?"

As if acting with the sudden halt of time, the gentle winds ceased, the chirping of birds were now absent, and even the sounds of their classmates on the school grounds seemed muffled. Velvet felt a bit of regret when she encouraged the young teen to speak to Jaune, more so the answer to the question she was asking for. Coco kept silent, wondering if the blond would actually spill his secret to her.

Sensing a somewhat gloomy aura over the blond, Ruby quickly added. "Y-you don't have to answer. It's just that I applied this year, but I was rejected. I was wondering what it's like attending there. And, I was hoping you could tell me why you decided to leave."

Jaune sat up, he turned to face Rose, his stoic expression and lifeless eyes told more of his experience than his words ever could.

"Let's say..." Jaune's willingness to respond to Ruby's question worried Velvet, she knew why Jaune left, but even then she admitted to having mixed feelings over how she felt towards Jaune after he told her. Granted, she was still his friend, she didn't want the blond to be a target here for the decisions he made in BC. "By oath you've sworn to uphold a certain set of codes and ethics, but you also swore to protect someone; to whom would your allegiance be?" The blond's question painted a confusing picture for the young teen, but she answered nonetheless. "To the person I promised to protect; I wouldn't have made them that promise if I wasn't going to go through with my word." Rose's response didn't surprise the blond, though, what happened next did surprise those with them. He chuckled, lightly.

"If that's your honest answer; then you never would've belonged in that school. Being rejected was probably for the best." Before Ruby got the chance to ask another question, the school's bell rung for the end of lunch and for students to begin heading back to their classrooms. Almost in an instant, the dark atmosphere faded, allowing Jaune to brush off any emotions he was showing. While Ruby didn't get an answer to her question, she began to wonder if applying for Brigadier's Common was a good idea, given the fact that she didn't bother to research the school prior to taking the test. Although, there wasn't much open information to begin with.

As the blond was about to descend to the third floor, he felt a tug on his arm. He turned to see Coco grasps his wrist while eerily smiling at him.

"Mind if I go to your place today?" She asked.

"Why ask when you're going to do it anyway?" The blond responded

To which the response was but a simple grin. "I'm asking for a reason, I do have respect for a person's privacy. So; can I go to your place today?"

"No."

"Alright, then we'll leave it at that." Coco released her grip on Jaune, and with an oddly calm smile, began to make her way towards her class. While she seemed to accept the answer, the blond couldn't help but wonder if she'd make a surprise visit. It wouldn't surprise him, though, he preferred some solitude tonight.

As the day progressed the blond found his remaining class time to be rather peaceful. There was the occasional small talk from Ruby during their free time, and while he wasn't accustomed to Coco's invasion of his personal space, this scenario was new, and interesting. In a manner of speaking, Jaune was content with how his school life was starting off. Calling Ruby his friend might've been a rash move on his part, still, she was interesting to say the least. Her innocence in certain subjects and somewhat childish personality didn't exactly coincide with how other teens her age would normally react. Either way, Jaune found Ruby's company welcoming, more so how intelligent she was in her studies. Which, ironically, made it hard for those in their group to believe that the young teen knew very little of adult innuendos. While she did catch on to few, others seemed to elude her. Regardless, the blond showed no ill expression or gave any reason to dislike her.

Still, while he mildly enjoyed their conversations, he still didn't know much of this young teen, and thus, limited what he spoke of himself and nothing of Brigadier's was further shared.

Surprisingly, the lecture ended early, allowing class 3A free time until the bell signaled the end of school. While Goodwitch sat at her desk, reading quietly, students moved about the classroom. Unsurprisingly, Coco sat beside the blonde, Ruby took a seat in front of him.

"Hey Jaune, do you play any video games?" Ruby asked.

"Sometimes. I'm not exactly big on games, but they are somewhat entertaining." He responded.

"Ever heard of the game; Ancient Imperium?"

Upon the blond shaking his head, the young teen went into the basic synopsis of the game. "The game is basically an online MMORPG. You get to create a character, give them an origin, hopefully nothing too cringy, and explore the world around you. It's really cool, there's this feature where you can create your own weapons too. It doesn't look like there are any restrictions because I forged a scythe that's also a gun." Jaune hummed to show interest in the young one's story, feign as his interest was. Ruby continued "It had an update where you can create a guild; assassins, mages, hunters, private soldiers. But a lot of people treat them like private communities for people with a particular goal in the game. You even get to suggest a guild name and let everyone decide which one they like; it's not necessarily a big thing but you kind of feel a bit of pride in your guild."

In all honesty, it did sound interesting, though, as Jaune pointed out; games weren't exactly his preferred method of passing the time. For some reason, the blond turned to Coco, whom seemed mildly shocked with a message she received on her scroll. For once, the blond didn't see her with her usual smile or threatening glare, rather, she seemed genuinely concerned over something. However, with no intention of getting involved, nor did he have a reason to; the blond shifted his eyes back to Ruby, who surprisingly was still going on about the game.

"...but the guild feature is the best in terms of getting money quick; you get more gold, and better rewards the higher your guild reputation is."

"Are you part of any?" Jaune asked. To which, Ruby shook her head and muttered her next words with what seemed like annoyance and anger mixed together.

"I used to belong to the Tigerlily guild."

"I can't help but feel like that's a reference to something." Jaune commented. "But you said 'used to', what happened?"

"There was a bit of tension when our guild master got into a disagreement with some of the members; they wanted to change the name of our guild to Lancaster. Others wanted to stay with the old name. It sounds stupid, I know, but one issue led to another and eventually it turned into a big deal. Our original guild was eventually disbanded due to all the in-fighting and the guild master's account getting hacked. Now there are two guilds from our old members; Tigerlily and Lancaster, both are constantly at each other's throats. It's hard to stay in touch with friends when the majority of them are on different sides...and they keep asking you to pick a side." Ruby's explanation began to sound more like a cliché 'war between old friends' scenario; two sides who were once united under a single banner are split after a single disagreement and are too stubborn to reconcile, thus harming those around them in the long run.

"I still can't help but feel like this is reference to something. And all of this began with a name? It doesn't just sound stupid; it IS stupid. What's the point of playing the game if people are more concerned with the guild's name, rather than focusing on what the game features themselves. But, there have been more idiotic reasons for a community to disband." Jaune commented, his interest in Ruby's story was fading, although, if worked on, could make for a decent book. Again, for some strange reason, the blond turned to check on Coco, who was now staring at him; smiling.

"What about you Ms. Adel, do you play games." Ruby asked Coco.

Jaune felt a shiver run down his spine as he saw Coco's expression shift as she turned to face Ruby.

"Sweetie, call me Coco, okay?" Her tone wasn't threatening, but her expression said otherwise. Almost instantly, the young teen nodded as Coco's expression lightened to her usual smile.

Ruby, on the other hand, seemed shocked with what she just witnessed. As she turned to Jaune for answers, the blond sighed and whispered. "She doesn't like being called by her last name."

"And to answer your question; I don't play as much as Velvet, but I did get invested in Grimm Souls 3. It's insanely annoying and unforgiving, but there's this part of me that likes the challenge the game gives." Coco responded.

Before their conversation could continue, the bells or Beacon rang, signaling all students to go home. The small group of three met up with Velvet and walked, oddly, slowly towards the entrance. Coco seemed to be walking incredibly slow for the sake of holding a conversation with the others. While Jaune denied allowing Coco into his apartment, it didn't mean she couldn't go to Velvet's. And yet...

Finally, after reaching the front gate, Ruby gave her new friends a long farewell and ran towards a small group of people, most noticeable of the bunch was a blonde haired teen with long unruly hair, lilac eyes, and a smile that seemed both caring and strict. Almost like a mother.

Seeing as how Coco's home was in the opposite direction of Jaune and Velvet's, she gave a slow and long goodbye before hugging the blond tightly and beginning her walk home. Rather than feel annoyed, Jaune shrugged off her behavior and walked silently home with Velvet. All the while glancing to the sky; from a sunny morning to a gloomy afternoon. Faintly, the blond could feel drizzling drops on his cheeks. While many enjoyed the heat of the sun, Jaune felt more at ease with the dim grey clouds hovering above, the sound and feel of rain allowed his mind to wander. Wander where? None but the blond would know, and given his personality, perhaps none would ever hear of where. Memories of times he had reasons to smile carelessly, laugh whole-heartedly, to be a child. An odd thing, to reminisce on emotions long-since driven out of him. Jaune walked quietly alongside Velvet, unaware of her worried stare.

As they walked past a collection small shops, a small glimpse of pink and brown from a nearby alley caught the blond's attention. While he could easily just walk away, pretending he didn't see anything, the fact that he also saw a glimpse of glowing red left no possibility of coincidence or excuse for feigning ignorance. They weren't just passing by the city, as lovely as these darkened alleys were. This scenario played similar to his time in Brigadier's. They were here for him, the question that lingered; why?

"Velvet." The bunny girl stopped just as the blond was turning to walk towards the alley. "I need to stop by somewhere before heading home. Tell Cinder I'll be home soon enough."

"I'll go with you." She was about to walk alongside Jaune before the boy held his palm to stop her. "No. You have a checkup today; Cinder told you go directly to the complex so she could take you. You don't want to keep her waiting."

"B-but-" she tried arguing, to no avail.

"Go. I'll be home soon." His last words were spoken with a level of uncertainty. Though, Velvet failed to read his tone, she left, reluctantly, to the complex. Once she was out of sight, the blond walked into the alley, with every step, his heartbeat increased slightly. He knew who was waiting for him, but as to their reasons, if the sudden knife to the neck was anything to go by...

"It seems like you're doing well..." a figure emerged from the shadows, blood red hair, horns indicating his Faunus heritage, and his companion, whom held a dagger closely to Jaune's neck, smiled devilishly whilst proudly showing her trademark pink/brown hair.

Standing outside her home, Coco remained still by the door, unmoving and hesitant to go in. The sight of a familiar car in the drive way gave her mixed feelings about going in. As her palms were about to grip the door knob, the sounds of angered shouts could be heard, following it not far behind were the sounds of shattered glass. The angered shouts went back and forth, their tones rising with each passing moment. And even when the drizzle shifted to heavy rain, Coco remained outside. Above all, even when the animosity could be felt from just standing by the door, Coco smiled. Her lips wavered each passing moment in the realization that she could just stand outside, and none would be the wiser of her absence. Though, in the interest of keeping her books from being ruined any further, Coco took a deep breath, gripped the door knob, and entered.

"Adam." Jaune's words dripped with a hint of venom.

"To leave without so much as a goodbye. I'm hurt, brother. Not as much as Neo, though." Adam spoke with a casual stoic tone. He gently removed his companion's dagger from the blond's neck, though; gratitude was not something he would be receiving from his former comrade.

"We're not brothers." Jaune responded with subtle hostility. The small companion giggled menacingly to the blond's response. It wasn't the first time the blond would answer harshly to Adam, although, it was seen as a common manner for the two to communicate.

"Maybe not the way most would see kinship. But then, it's not uncommon for you to deny your heritage, is it?" Adam's tone became slightly more hostile with each passing second. His companion kept a playful grin focused on the blond. "Leaving BC wasn't part of our agreement."

"So, what? Are you here to drag me back? Kill me?" Jaune backed away slightly, though kept a watchful eye on the small pink and brown. "You can go ahead and try, but I guarantee; I'm taking one of you with me."

Adam smiled, the small threat fell empty, as both knew the blond had no weapon to fight with, nor did they have the same level of training. "Killing you wouldn't do any good, and I'd prefer keeping my people alive." Adam reminded. Though, the response from Jaune was a light scoff.

"'My people'? Sorry to burst your bubble but I'm not Faunus; I'm human. We've nothing in common; goals, morals, or otherwise."

"We both know that's not entirely true, Major." Adam was hinting on events that made the blond shoot a rather daring glare. "Taking you back by force would be counterproductive." Almost in an instant, the two were now face to face. "Besides, you might not realize it, but you leaving BC opens a window of opportunity. Especially since ' _she_ ' is planning something. And as of late, Atlas has their eyes set on BC, the White Fang, and us in particular. But, that's not stopping the headmistress or her program."

"And you plan to stop her?" Jaune smiled mockingly, surprised to see this side of his former comrade. "Be a hero?"

Adam, instead, faintly smiled, and backed away. "The opposite."

"Why tell me this? Doesn't it seem pretty stupid to reveal intent to someone who isn't on board yet?" Jaune asked to which Adam reached into his blazer and retrieved an envelope. "You're supposed to be the 'best' of us, aren't you?"

"I said it before; I intend to keep my family alive. Besides, who will you run to? You tell anyone, and you become just as much a target as us. Familiar blood runs deep; you can't honestly tell me they won't turn on you after they learn the truth. The White Fang should be proof enough what a bit of difference could drive people to. Answer me this; how far will the Atlesians go when they realize what you did. The rookie from Atlas?" The weight of Adam's words left the boy without a response.

Taurus handed the envelope to the blond. "I want you to read these; decrypted copies from the same file we stole off the Headmistress's terminal. Catch up on Intel; I'll contact you when I have a task."

Reluctantly, the blonde accepted the envelope. "Again, giving information to someone who isn't a confirmed ally; I'm starting to question if you're the Adam I know and despise. On that note, what makes you think I'll side with you after reading these?" Jaune asked while placing the envelope in his blazer.

"Because, like it or not; I know you. You'll come around. I'll contact you when it's time to act. Until then, enjoy... 'School life'. Be loner or join a club, if you're into that kind of thing. Start some trouble; you seem to be good at that…and be safe." If the blond didn't know any better, he would've thought his former comrade was actually showing some level of concern for the blond's wellbeing. As Adam walked away, the blond was pulled down by his tie as a pair of warm lips intertwined with his. The pink and brown companion smiled as she broke their contact. She handed him a small slip of paper, blew a kiss followed by a sly wink and ran off after Adam.

Having had a surprise similar to this occur before, Jaune wasn't exactly caught off guard, but he cared little for affections from the small psychopath. He wasn't wary of it, but he didn't welcome it either. Jaune unfolded the small slip.

 _'Behave yourself, or else.'_

A small heart was printed near the end. Jaune crumbled the note and tossed it away. He had little interest in that girl, more so after he seeing a side of her most would never expect at first glance. As he was to exit the alley, the weather shifted from drizzling to full on heavy rain. With no hurry to get home, the blonde walked home in the pouring rain. While he had no intention of returning to Brigadier's, the fact that Adam would go out of his way to deliver a message, not to mention, the fact that he was sharing information on a program being run under the eye of the headmistress was more than unprecedented. It caught the blond's attention, their initial revelation was shattering enough, but knowing Adam; he'd take advantage of whatever the Headmistress created. While the blonde could just easily sit aside and watch everything unfold, his worry was towards the content in the envelope given to him. If, however, the contents weren't already destroyed by the rain. Given that his blazer was drenched, it wouldn't surprise him if the papers were soaked.

Taking his time getting home, roughly an hour and a half, the complex was within sight. If their schedules were as the blond remembered; the twins wouldn't get off work until later in the night, Sun and Octavia had some errands to run in Beacon so the wont be home just yet. And lastly, Cinder had taken Velvet to an annual checkup. Meaning until dinner, Jaune would be by himself. As he unlocked the gate, he noticed a figure sitting outside the door to Velvet's room. Her dark brown hair with a light strand of brown gave away her identity. In all honesty, it did surprise the blond that Coco stopped by to see Velvet, though, between the time the bunny girl had left and him arriving; she'd been waiting here for at least over an hour. Like him, she was completely soaked, and as he approached, her head rose. Upon laying eyes on him, her smile had returned. Coco waved casually. Though, what caught the blond's attention, were what seemed like two faint cuts on the girl's left cheek.

 _'Where those there before?'_ Granted the blond hardly payed much attention to her, but something didn't sit right with him. "So you came for a visit after all." He commented.

"I came for a visit." She chirped. "But, lil' Velv isn't home."

The blond held his bag over her head to keep the rain from falling on her, though, with a wet bag, dripping water was an issue. Though, the young teen showed no distaste for the curtesy.

"You're gonna catch a cold. A smart person would've gotten an umbrella by now." The blond commented.

"You're one to talk." Coco replied, sneezing a mere few seconds later.

The blond sighed, offering the soaked teen a hand. She accepted almost immediately, the stoic teen then gestured her to a small building next to the complex. It was, coincidentally, a bathhouse, much to Coco's surprise that she didn't notice it beforehand. When she entered, like any other bathhouse, there were separate changing rooms for men and women, small storages to place clothes, and the bath was almost as large as the two rooms combined. Taking note, there were also shower stalls next to the changing room. And in an almost comical scenario; the bathhouse seemed to be either; coed or there were certain hours each gender had the bath to themselves. Regardless of which ever system they used to share their bathhouse, the people in this complex seemed pretty tight-knit, to some degree.

As she removed her drenched undergarments, her mind wandered to events that occurred earlier. Her fingers tightened their hold on her drenched shirt, pressed tightly against her chest. The pain, the shock, the anger; she could've gone anywhere, and yet she chose to run here. To a complex filled with the oddest of tenants, and the strangest manager she had seen so far. A sudden knock on the wooden door broke her chain of thought, startling her ever so slightly.

"I'm going to wash the soaked clothes, when you're done undressing, just slide the basket out and I'll put yours in too." The blond's voice, although muffled, was clear in how awkward the boy must have felt asking a classmate for her wet clothes. Regardless of circumstance, there was an argument for how weird it felt. With a soft chuckle, Coco placed all of her clothes in the basket, wrapped herself in a towel, and walked to the door, though, one issue remained. "And what will I wear when I'm done?" She asked slyly.

Her answer was the door creaking open and a small basket with a clean pair of grey sweatpants, a black muscle shirt, and, to her surprise, boxer briefs.

"It's all I have available."

"No panties?" Coco quirked.

"Oh, sorry. Hold on, I think I have a spare pair lying around somewhere." The blond replied sarcastically.

The response was a small chuckle from Coco as she slid her basket to Jaune.

"If you're going in the bath, wash up first before going in." The blond retrieved his classmate's clothes and walked over to what looked like the bathhouse's laundry room. And odd addition to this building, though, it made Coco wonder what exactly the manager does to afford this. The complex itself wasn't exactly a 'stand out collection of rooms for rent', but this building obviously cost a bit for what seemed like a woman with few tenants.

Though, in keeping with Coco's curious nature, she peeked ever so slightly to see if she could catch a glimpse of the blonde. What she was met with left her staring for far longer than she had planned. Her pupils were widened with shock and some level of horror. Even though he wore a muscle shirt, she saw a small portion of his back with a sight she was not prepared for, nor did she want to get caught looking. She retreated back into the changing room, her mind still processing what was witnessed. As per Jaune's instructions, she washed up before entering the bath, though. She took a bit longer as her mind took its sweet time processing what she saw. She had heard rumors of what Brigadier's did to its students, but she always thought those were just ramblings of students who didn't make the cut, or maybe ones who couldn't handle a bit of punishment. But this...

Once her mind settled, she wrapped the towel around herself and entered the bath. She did so slowly, thinking she'd run into the blond. Though, as she made her way inside, she couldn't help but notice the absence of a blond soldier. Still, she found it easier to settle in, the water helped warm her up. Relaxing, however, was another issue entirely. Thinking he might walk in at any moment, Coco kept her towel wrapped tightly around her, assuring no possibility of an accidental slip.

While she kept an ear open for the blond's footsteps, she found herself slowly dozing off. A sudden knock from the men's changing room door snapped her back up.

"Don't fall asleep in the bath, or you'll catch a cold." Jaune warned, though, he made no show of coming in.

"You're not coming in?" For a moment, Coco wondered what possessed her to ask that, but her curiosity wanted to see more of what the blond's clothes hid.

"I'm going to take a shower, I'll warm up something to eat when I'm done." Before the blond walked off, Coco asked one last question.

"Which room is yours?"

"If I had to guess, I'd say the only one with lights on." The blond bluntly responded.

Coco, again, chuckled lightly to his response, though she couldn't deny she felt a bit let down that he wasn't going to join her. And at that moment, she was glad for once that her lips didn't speak before her mind.

Twenty minutes after taking a quick shower, the blond sat in his room, water brewing in a kettle in the kitchen while the boy kept himself occupied with Goodwitch's homework. He wondered if Coco fell asleep in the bath, it wasn't uncommon, Sun had done it before. But, in this case, the blond was more preoccupied on assuring that whoever got home first, no misunderstanding would take place if they should see Coco in Jaune's clothes. Among the soaked papers the boy retrieved from his bag and blazer, the envelope was kept separate from everything else. Curiosity taking the best of him, he opened the envelope, and much to his surprise; there were no papers, but rather a small hard drive wrapped in plastic. It looked as if it could be compatible with a scroll. Though, at the moment, the blond fiddled with the small device rather than attempt to connect it to his scroll and read whatever Adam wanted him to read.

The boy slumped backwards onto his bed, sighing heavily as he held the hard drive to the light. Was his old life going to follow him no matter where he went? Would it be better to just accept his role in this? "Should I get involved?" He asked himself, not expecting a response.

"Involved in what?" Came a response from the doorway that caused the boy to skip a heartbeat. Though, after seeing who responded to him, he lay back down and continued fiddling with the device. "So you found my room, huh?" He responded.

Coco entered the room dressed in the attire lent to her, using a towel to finish drying her hair. She glanced around, noticing the BC uniform hung in front what looked like the closet. The blazer was almost similar to Beacon's, though, the difference was the military insignia students of Brigadier's wore on their shoulders and collar.

The room was slightly heated thanks to the steam emitting from a cooking pot in the small kitchen. Coco glanced towards the blond, who had hid the small device while she was distracted and was now staring aimlessly at the ceiling. She sighed lightly and dropped herself next to the boy. Jaune glanced to Coco who seemed quite pleased with where she was; completely in the blond's personal space again.

"So, what took you so long to get home? Didn't you and Velvet walk home together?" She went straight to questions, though, if only to pass the time, Jaune indulged her.

"Velvet went on ahead of me." Knowing she had more questions to go with his response, the blond expected her to ask more questions, though, he was surprised to hear only an accepting hum, followed by her suddenly shifting to give him little personal space.

For once, there was a good moment of peace between the two. No words exchanged; no glances or further invasions of personal space. While Jaune preferred this moment as it was, his eyes couldn't help but glance to his classmate, whom was staring at the ceiling with great boredom. Though, it was when he noticed the small cut on her cheek. It was small, and barely noticeable, almost as if it was caused by a finger nail.

"You know..." Coco began "I'm not exactly the best at...socializing." She admitted, uttering those words with great annoyance.

"No. I'm shocked." The blond deadpanned, receiving a playful punch. Unbeknownst to him, grinning ever so slightly as Coco chuckled lightly while continuing.

"I know I probably came across too...awkward and forced, for a first impression."

"Probably?" Again, the blond's words were given a small grin before Coco turned her gaze to him.

"And it looks like a bit of me is already starting to rub off on you." She teased.

"…fuck."

"Figuratively, this time."

"Please don't start."

"I want to get through to you, whatever way I can. So let's do things your way." Her words lacked their usual happy-go-lucky tone.

"My way?" The blond asked, confused and slightly curious.

"Yea, we ask two questions about one another, both of us answer. Keep it honest and simple, and if we don't want to answer the question, we pass. Sound good?"

Jaune, surprisingly, actually gave Coco's idea some thought.

"How is it 'my way'?" He asked.

"The answers are short and honest, and you have a choice whether you choose to answer." Coco responded.

"How will I know your response to my question is the truth?"

"You're gonna have to take a chance and trust me."

"You expect me to just 'take a chance' with someone I met yesterday?" He asked, to which Coco smiled slyly.

"I do."

Again, Jaune gave her idea some thought before asking. "I can pass on a question I don't want to answer?"

Coco nodded.

The blond sighed lightly before glancing black towards the ceiling. "I know I'm going to regret this in some way." He whispered to himself. "Alright. I'll take a chance."

With an unsettling, victorious smile, Coco gazed back towards the ceiling. "You can ask first." She offered.

"Is there ever a chance you'll let me have my personal space?" The blond asked almost quickly.

"Kind of a softball question." Coco muttered. "And yea, you'll have your space." She sighed whilst moving ever-so slightly away from Jaune. While it wasn't as much as he wanted, it was a start at least. Though, now it was the blond's turn to answer her question.

"Are you gonna go on a date with little Soleil, since she gave you that...empty letter?" Her tone showed more amusement than what the blond expected.

To this, he turned away from her mischievous expression to avoid inciting any ridiculous schemes she might come up with.

"I said a confession was a possibility, I never said it was exactly what Ciel intended to give me."

"But you also said 'she didn't exactly have a convincing poker face'." Coco reminded.

"..." having no immediate reply and no intent on arguing, Jaune immediately switched the conversation to his next and last question. "What happened there?" He gestured to the scar on her cheek. To which she paled slightly.

Coco chuckled nervously while avoiding eye contact. "My cat got a little mischievous, guess he didn't like when I got into his personal space too."

"Funny, I don't think I've heard of a cat with two claws." The blond remarked sarcastically. Before given the chance to reply, he followed with "but, then again, I'm no expert on felines, and there's a lot in Remnant that science still can't explain." Almost as if saved by his manner of thinking, Coco was able to avoid having to explain her little scar. Though, from the way Jaune looked at her, he didn't seem convinced of his own reasoning.

"Last question!" Coco perked, allowing the blond to sigh in relief, only to realize who the last question belonged to.

"Alright, Jaune..." Coco began, and after much awkward silence, she asked. "Have you ever been in love?"

For a brief moment, there was an awkward silence between the two. So far their questions didn't seem too personal, mostly just to pass the time, though; the blond did expect her to ask something like this. The questions following up to this, however, didn't prepare him. "You realize we're both in our third year of high school, right?" he remarked, hoping she'd ask something else. Instead, she surprised him yet again.

"I was. Once..." Jaune eyes fixed slowly on Coco, who decided to answer her own question. "At least I thought it was. It didn't go too well, and my parents weren't exactly thrilled when I told them." Her tone edged close to some level of fear.

"Girl?" Jaune suggested.

"Faunus." Coco corrected. "...but, yeah. Girl too."

"That's quite the packaged surprise."

"Yea, my parents thought so. They…kept telling me I was confused, blamed anything they could to excuse my preference; it was the media, the school, scrolls, books. Literally anything." She spoke so nonchalant; Jaune almost assumed she didn't care anymore. But, that was far from the truth. The blond was caught off guard when Coco suddenly laughed aloud for a bit. "You'd think parents would be a bit more accepting with their own child...maybe I was a bit too optimistic about them."

Jaune noticed a small tear roll quickly down the teen's cheek, and just as quickly how his classmate wiped away any sign of sadness. She forced a smile and awaited some form of response from the blond. And the one he would give was one she wanted, but never expected.

"I suppose you could say I was…interested in someone as well." His admission was startling, but gave Coco a genuine smile as she began hinting "Who was it? Was it Soleil? She going to be your new 'right-hand'?" Before continuing with her jokes, she found a single finger held against her face with a small glare from her classmate.

"I'll tell you, but no innuendos of any kind." With just a single nod as a reply, the blond continued, however, his eyes drifted to the ceiling once more. "I can't say if they felt the same way I did, but it was the first time I ever felt that way towards anyone. In a way, she was similar to Ruby; socially awkward, clumsy, incredibly smart, and...disgustingly adorable." Jaune whispered those last words as quietly as he could.

"She must've been shocked when you confessed." Coco nudged, to which what came next was enough to startle even Cinder.

Jaune laughed softly, remember the utter mess he was trying to express his feelings in a non-military, and non-condescending tone. "Worse than you can imagine. To make matters more complicated, she didn't even know what a 'relationship' was."

"Really? You'd think a high school girl would at least have some knowledge of romance."

"Not this one apparently." Jaune scoffed playfully. "But I didn't care if she never understood how I felt; I just wanted…I wanted to protect her."

As the sudden realization of how much he shared settled in, the blond felt as if he exposed too much of himself. He wanted to leave her with a simple response of 'yes, he was in romantically interested in someone' end of story. Though, the image of 'her' when they met, in the time they grew closer, to the moment when he was forced to make a choice, it only reinforced his hatred for BC.

Quite a sudden buzzkill, though, if only to himself, the blond had to admit to feeling a bit more comfortable around Coco. A feeling similar to is time with the rook. And that worried him, immensely. Jaune arose from his bed and walked towards his kitchen. The kettle began whistling, letting the teens know

"She must've been really lucky to have you watching over you." Coco noticed the blond's shift in mood and hoped to cheer him up, not knowing, however, she was doing the complete opposite.

'No, she wasn't…' As Jaune poured two cups, his mind began to play flashbacks unforgivingly. As if to punish him for having a moment, sounds accompanied the flashbacks. The tears, the pain, the betrayal, and the deafening ring of a firearm were enough to have him live through every other painful emotion that followed. In an instant, BC was no longer the source of his hatred at the moment.

"She never should have met me." Jaune muttered, failing to keep his thoughts from being spoken aloud. "If she didn't…she'd still be alive."

 **Hey everyone, I have no excuse for you guys, I've been lagging on chapters, badly. And I apologize, greatly. I really need to catch up on my other stories. Also, quick reminder; this story will have some slice of life elements in it, but I'll be adding to it a storyline that hopefully has some action you'll enjoy. Again, no supernatural elements or the Grimm, just good ole humans and faunus.**

 **I'd like to thank you guys for reading. Really, I appreciate the feedback. If you like this story; I'm glad it's keeping you entertained. If you didn't like it; well, you can't please everyone.**


	5. New Tenant

The atmosphere had shifted drastically in mere seconds from a somewhat joyful moment to an awkward silence. After Jaune silently confessed that the person he had interest in was no longer among the living, the two classmates had nothing to say or share with one another. Did he mean to share that information, or did it slip out? Coco wanted to say something, but found herself at a loss for words. Though, she saw Jaune in a different light, considering now the manner in which he seemingly blamed himself for the death of the person he cared for. In some ways, it did explain his trust issues, and the way in which he got easily annoyed with her over her teases and invasion of personal space.

In that instant, she remembered what she saw earlier, leading her to feel nothing but sympathy for the blond. Having lost someone he cares for, blaming himself, being disgraced publicly, the pain he carried on his back. Coco could only imagine how his family felt on the subject. Even then, nothing could've prepared her for what she saw next.

As Jaune remained motionless, glaring at two cups, he failed to notice a river running down his cheeks. Only until the blond glanced up to kitchen window did he see the overwhelming tears. The blond was shocked, partially, believing initially that he had control over his emotions. With nothing to use as a shield or to wipe away his sorrow, he used his hand to stop the tears, though, they did very little.

While he tried to regain his composer, the blond was unprepared for a sudden embrace that came from behind. The teen hissed, and with his teeth grit tightly, he tried to break off from Coco, not out of anger, but of instinct. What the blond failed to realize immediately, was the fact that in terms of strength; he'd be better off letting her hug him. Without a doubt, he was stuck with Coco in this embrace until she decided to let go. Even so, he grabbed her arms and tried to break her hold. Being this close to her, if not for what he was hiding on his back, the feeling of her pressing against him with only a muscle shirt would be somewhat exciting for the teen.

"Adel, I'm not in the mood for..."

"I'm sorry."

Her apology startled him, oddly enough, to stop him from trying to remove her.

The two remained in their position, silent. Only for a few seconds.

"Why are you apologizing?" The blond's tone was calm; he had regained his usual demeanor. Tears no longer ran, but the swelling guilt in him prevented his mind from burying the images that broke him.

"I didn't know she had this much of an impact on you."

"...let go of me." Her response was a slightly tighter hug, again, causing the blond to wince. Coco laid her head gently on his back; the blond could feel her pressing against him. While, not admitting the situation was enjoyable, to a degree, he still tried to get her to let go of him. Eventually, his struggling softens, much to the point where he found himself getting used to her 'close-encounters'.

"You give in?" She asked, still keeping a tight grip on him.

"This is very uncomfortable." The blond commented. Given the fact that he turned off the stove, the room temperature lowered, and he could feel the effects already. Having just recovered from one emotion he couldn't control, the idea of another was one he preferred to avoid. Coco showed no intention of letting go, even when his tears finally ceased.

"Can we talk more? I'll let you choose the topic." She offered.

"I'd rather just have tea. Also, I'm kind of hungry." A sudden growl made for great timing, and comedic effect, giving way to a soft chuckle from Adel.

"Tell you what; let's order out...and talk. I'll pay." She offered.

"No hugs." The blond, while still uncomfortable, had hoped that no one would see this situation and take it out of hand. A forlorn hope, but if his neighbors came by while he and his classmate where like this, the misunderstandings and teases would never cease.

"Can't make any promises."

"Adel." Jaune's tone was dealt with, applying only the slightest of pressure to his back.

"Use my first name, and I'll agree to the terms." Coco's smile made the blond feel as if he was getting the short end of the deal, but, at least he wouldn't have to deal with any sudden misunderstandings.

"Fine." With a victorious smile, Coco let go, allowing Jaune to turn and face her. He didn't glare or show any hostility, but rather, a stoic expression was all he could offer as he walked over to retrieve his scroll. "There are six restaurants nearby that make deliveries. Anything you looking for in particular?" He asked.

"Something spicy would be nice." She answered. And with that response, the blond knew of one place to call. Before doing so, he reached into a drawer near his bed and retrieved a flyer. "Here, this place has some good selections." Coco took the flyer and reviewed the specials.

"Ooh. The food looks good, any recommendations?" The blond, almost without knowing, expressed a faintly devilish grin and pointed to the back of the flyer. The item made Coco's eyes widen slightly before she grinned at the challenge.

"Alright, let's see which of us gives in first."

As she took out her scroll, she watched her classmate lay on his bed, the discussion from earlier still affecting him. She closed her scroll and walked to the side of her classmate's bed. She sat down, kneeling over the side of the bed. "You feeling okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" He asked, almost in an annoyed tone.

"I dunno, maybe the way you openly blame yourself for someone's death says otherwise...oh! And the crying too." Her sarcasm wasn't getting on his nerves, though; it wasn't exactly welcomed at the moment.

"It's not a big deal, I'll get past it."

 _'I always do.'_

"Well, I am sorry for bringing it up. I just wanted to know a bit more about you."

The blond sat up from his bed and couldn't help but glare at her. Not out of annoyance or some form of personal hatred, but for the fact that he couldn't understand why she was so invested in getting to know him. Most people would've given up by now, so what was her reason?

"I don't get you." The blond admitted, "I've been nothing but an asshole to you and yet you're still here."

"Oh you are an asshole." Coco reinforced, rather quickly. "And I'm still pissed at how you accepted Ruby as a friend, but I'm still working my way up from nuisance."

"Personal spa-"

"ANYWAY! I'm still here because I want to be. You may be a jerk but believe me there are people in our school who can be worse than you. And...whether you realize it now or later, we have a bit more in common than you'd expect." Jaune almost scoffed at her statement, though he knew better than to mock any of her ideas at the moment.

"On a separate matter...I'd...appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about this, Coco." Almost Immediately, Jaune regretted using her name, for on his classmate's face, was an almost disgustingly happy expression. Her message was clear; she finally got him to say her name, she won. Petty the win might've been, but for her, it meant something.

Another hour passed, returning from a recent checkup, Velvet and Cinder both ran towards the complex. The rain had lightened up, but the freezing cold winds made a warm room all the more appealing. Within their hands were two bags, each filled with ingredients for the dinner that night. The two, rather than run to Cinder's room, noticed Jaune's lights and decided to head to his apartment instead. As they were to enter his room, Cinder heard muffled laughter. The older woman confused and worried as to why there was another person in the blond's room kept her from entering. Upon hearing, distinctly, a girl's laugh, she paled.

"It's not funny." She could hear Jaune's voice, she could hear a slight tone of disdain, followed by what could've been him gasping for air.

"But it's cute." Cinder felt a vein pulse when she heard the girl's compliment.

"Please, Coco, I need..." both Cinder and Velvet were surprised to hear Coco's name, more so that Jaune uttered it. Though what followed,

"You know the rules, Jaune, you break them; and there's a punishment waiting for you, curtesy of yours truly. Don't give up, just a little longer." In a faint sense, Coco's voice also sounded as if it were grasping for air, though, she seemed to have an easier time than Jaune.

"How are you able to handle this so lightly?"

"It's not my first time, and between you and me, I really like the burning feeling."

"Why did...I agree to this?" The blond asked.

"Cause its hot?"

"Don't push it."

"Sorry."

Outside, Cinder was currently restrained by Velvet after attempting to break the door down.

"Let. Me. Go!" Cinder demanded, whether Jaune was doing something bad or this was just a misunderstanding, she needed to make sure. Though, the bunny girl holding her was making it harder with each tug.

"Please don't! We know Jaune; he'd never do something like that!" Velvet argued, her words falling on empty ears as she could see her manager's palms slowly reaching the door knob. Just as her palms were to make contact, the knob turned, the door opened revealing Jaune, sweating profusely.

"Why are you yelling?" Jaune asked, nonchalantly.

The two glanced inside to see Coco in a similar, her hand fanning intensely as sweat ran down her face. Her choice of attire was what caught the eye of two outside.

"Hey Velv!" Coco called out as loud as she could. In front of her, on a table was a bag of takeout. Cinder and Velvet turned back to the sweating blond, whose expression had yet to change.

"...um...mind if we come in?" Velvet asked, shyly. With little hesitation, Jaune nodded, gesturing his manager and friend to walk in.

Moments after being allowed in, Cinder and Velvet sat on the blond's bed, the boy sat with Coco on stools in the kitchen. The group kept quiet for a good while, the blond and Coco drinking ice cold water to cool themselves down. The two of them challenged one another to handle a nearby restaurant's spiciest dish, leaving a few questions answered, though, there remained; why was Coco there in the first place, why did Jaune let her in, and, most interesting, why was she wearing Jaune's cloths? While wanting to ask these, Cinder kept to herself, something she rarely did. She did so now knowing that her blond wouldn't lie, under any circumstance. So, she played it out smoothly, act calm, later on she'd have a rather long talk about him being alone with a girl. Meanwhile, it irked her to see Coco lean towards Jaune, more so the casual way the two talked to one another. Jaune showed little irritation, he seemed rather comfortable, to an extent. Granted, personal space was still an issue, seeing him push her away when she got too close; however, the manner in which he spoke showed some sense of familiarity. The final nail on the coffin was when Coco looked as if whispering some form of joke, assuming it was a jest considering the snickering Jaune was failing to hold in.

"Ms. Adel, if I may ask; why are you here?" Cinder asked, as calmly as her tone could allow.

"I came to visit Velv, but she wasn't home. I thought she'd be back in a bit so I waited outside...then it started raining. Jaune came home after a bit, gave me some extra clothes, he offered me tea, and here we are; burning our taste buds. It doesn't sound all that interesting, but I'd like to think we learned a bit more about each other than intended." The manner in which she finished her sentence left both Velvet and Cinder with a scenario each could play out differently in their heads. As for Jaune, while he wasn't surprised to hear her make such a statement, his hopes to avoid any misunderstandings flew right out the door.

Following all other tenants arriving home, the evening was rather eventful, mostly Fall and the older Malachite twin in their usual squabbles. Sun and Olivia spent their time questioning Coco over what occurred during her time alone with Jaune, unwilling to take a non-lewd outcome. Velvet and the younger Malachite twin assisted Jaune with cooking the dinner for that night. Even if only been the 2nd day the two spent, Coco didn't seem to be deterred in her effort to get closer to the blond. Her intention still felt unclear, though, for the moment, Jaune felt a hint of shame hit him for allowing his guard to drop. To feel so vulnerable, allowing a stranger to see him in such a state...and yet, to know Ciel didn't detest him, and his family had yet to contact him; the future had more visions of opportunity and freedom. And with that in mind, knowing military wasn't in his future, and in his third year of high school, the blond began to wonder what career would best suit him after graduating. Taking into account what he could do best, non-military wise, being a chef didn't sound so bad. Moving away to a small city or settlement in the rural territories of Vale, take a simple job as a chef. It all sounded easy, but knowing his father; he wouldn't be able to reach 6 miles out of the city before being hauled back. Even when shaming his family, they wanted to 'minimize the spread of their mistake'. Regardless, he still didn't have any set plans just yet. With that in mind, there remained the meeting he had early. Adam wouldn't bring him back into the fold unless he was truly desperate for allies, if he was planning to go through with the idea they shared during his last year in BC, the school was going to take quite an assault in the near future.

After dinner, with most of the tenants occupied watching a movie in their manager's living room, Cinder sat by herself in the kitchen. Her attention was elsewhere, that is, until Jaune's classmate sat next to her. Her shy grin made no impression on the woman, rather, she preferred not having to speak with Coco considering, while not openly admitting, she felt jealous that this 'Diva', as Olivia put it, managed to gain enough of Jaune's trust for him to allow her into his room.

"Ms. Fall, would you mind if ask about the empty room in your complex?"

Sensing the question that would follow, Cinder was going to outright shoot her down, that it, until she noticed, as Coco didn't make eye contact, it allowed Cinder to glance towards the teen's partially exposed back. She noticed something she didn't expect to see in this particular teen, although, taking it into consideration, it actually made sense that Jaune opened up to her faster; they shared something in common. Though, for Jaune to have seen it, it meant the two would have to have had no...the very idea began to irritate Fall to a great degree.

"Ma'am?" Cinder snapped back to reality as she refocused her eyes to Coco's. "I was wondering if...I could..."

Trying to think of logical reasons to turn her away, Cinder began with. "You know, sweetheart, I'm gonna be honest; I don't like you. I'm worried for my baby's innocence."

"I'm not your baby." Jaune responded from the living room.

"Personal feelings aside, I do charge each tenant. The twins work, they both pay their share. Sun, Velvet and Olivia are students but they have part time jobs. Even Jaune earns money on his own accord, I don't ask how. Also, you're underage; you'll need your parent's approval."

"I have some money saved up. I'm not against taking a part time job. As for my parents..." Coco's grip tightened, though, her smile didn't fade. "I'm sure that won't be a problem."

"I'm not sure I can accept that answer...then again, I honestly don't care. As long as you get one of your folks to call me. Are you sure this is something you want to do?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I wasn't sure. Truth be told; I was already looking into the school's dormitory program, but I ran into a little problem with my application." Coco shifted her eyes away.

"What sort of problem?" Cinder whispered, wondering if Coco would tell her if the two kept a low profile.

"If _she_ finds me, you'll know soon enough." Coco's answer had an obvious touch of fear lingering, as if she had hoped to keep something away by moving into this little place no one has heard of.

While having no intention of bringing drama to her complex, glancing at her stacked bills, having another tenant to help cover costs would be beneficial. While having no intention of leaving her alone with Jaune again, she couldn't deny that Coco met the terms she had for tenants, something everyone shared; what made them so comfortable around each other, with minor exception of Jaune of course. Reluctantly, the woman reached into a cabinet drawer and retrieved a single silver key. Before handing it to Coco, she gave the teen one fair warning. "This rule is for everyone; whatever it is you're running from, if it finds you; face it. In this complex, I'm the head matron. And Momma isn't raising cowards. Understand?" As soon as the teen nodded with just a bit of confusion on that last part, the key fell into Coco's palm.

"Yo, listen up kids!" Once all eyes were on Cinder, she gestured to Coco. "Meet your new neighbor."

 **-Next Day-**

Early on the morning, two sisters walked side by side to school, the eldest known as Beacon's second diva; Yang Xiao Long. Her baby sister, the prodigy of beacon; Ruby Rose, walked with her head held high, unbeknownst to her sister of the friends she made the day prior. As the two reached the school grounds, the blonde sister caught sight of her friends waiting by the entrance. As she turned to take her sister with her, she noticed a missing space Ruby once occupied. Turning frantically around, looking for her sister, she noticed the small one running up to a girl with a different colored uniform to that of Beacon's. From the way they greeted one another, it almost seemed as if the two were friends.

"Sergeant Soleil, it's great to see you again." Ruby chirped, rather enthusiastic to see Ciel again.

"Ms. Rose, it's good to see you as well. I'm so sorry to bother you, but I really need to head back to my school, and I was wondering if it wouldn't be too much to ask for a favor?" Ciel's twiddled her thumbs nervously, glancing around, looking to make sure no familiar blond was in sight.

"Sure, what's up?"

Soleil reached into her blazer and retrieved an envelope. She made a quick checkup to make sure, not only was there a letter inside, but it was the one she intended to send. Confirming the contents, she sealed the letter and handed it to the young teen. The blush on her cheek made the situation all the cheesier, and somewhat adorable.

"Can you...give this to my major when you see him." Ruby nodded, accepting the envelope and placing it in her blazer. She glanced behind of Ciel's and smiled slyly.

"Oh, speak of the devil, hey Jaune." Almost in an instant, Soleil ducked behind one of the steel gate's pillars. She kept her head down, her hands held over her head pressing down on her beret.

"I was kidding." Ruby admitted, feeling somewhat guilty. Ciel rose up, fixed her skirt and walked towards Ruby. Her calm expression shifted to a menacing smile.

"Lying is a bad virtue for a young maiden." She warned the young teen yet again. The young girl nervously laughed off Ciel's antics.

"It's none of my business, but why not tell Jaune directly?" The young teen, obviously having never been in this position, left Ciel unable to answer. She twiddled her fingers for a moment before facing the young teen.

"Is it that obvious?"

"I think Jaune said something along the lines; you'd have to be a special kind of stupid to not notice." Ruby pointed out; distinctly remember hearing the blond's discussion with Coco. Then rose another issue, the fact that Adel admitted to having kissed the blond. Though, while it was made clear she only gave him a peck in the cheek, Ciel probably wouldn't like the idea of being around Coco for whatever reason. "But then, that's what Coco told me..." Ruby mumbled out loud. Inwardly face palming herself for saying that name.

Glancing up, she noticed Ciel's shy attitude was replaced with a cold demeanor. Her fist balled up, tightening as she pictured the idea of losing her Major to the brown haired teen she met the day prior. The one who, even when invading her Major's personal space, wasn't automatically pushed away. She felt a swelling pain in her chest; breathing became harder with each passing second.

"D-d...do you know...what relationship she has with the Major." The word 'relationship' made her situation worse.

Ruby actually gave it some thought before coming up with a response. "Jaune thinks shes annoying and he hates how she never gives him personal space, but if he hated her, I doubt he'd still talk to her. As for Coco, she's really into him, but i don't think she likes him 'that' way. Honestly, I think they're just works their way up to being friends." While not completely, Ruby's words helped ease Ciel's swollen pain. Ruby glanced to the side, and with a bright smile she waved. "Hey Jaune!"

"What did I say about lying?" Ciel asked the teen, only to have a voice beside her ask.

"Ruby's lying?" Soleil's eyes widened, jumping only ever so slightly as her head turned to face her Major. Jaune's stoic expression was of no help to her nervous state, though, upon looking to those accompanying him, she saw the rabbit Faunus from yesterday and...Coco. While she didn't necessarily detest the teen with shades, Soleil didn't exactly enjoy the idea of someone so clingy near her Major.

"Good morning, Ciel." Jaune's stoic expressions shifted to a light grin as he greeted his friend, the former comrade on the other hand, having never seen him genuinely smile before and hearing him say her first name, began blushing.

"Good morning, Major." She greeted him with a salute, standing at attention. Both she and Coco shared a subtle glance, expressing no sign of tension or ease; simply a show of acknowledgement.

"Hey Jaune…" Ruby managed to silently slip between Soleil and Jaune, surprising them soldier students. "I was wondering if you wanted to hang out this Friday at the Valen Citadel; it's a new shopping mall, I hear it has a ton of stores to explore. Wanna go?"

Having been given this offer three times now, the blond wondered if Cinder had a hand in this, considering she was the one who often complained he rarely left his apartment. Before being given the chance to reply, Ruby added. "We can all go as a group. If we want to explore different stores, we'll keep in touch with our scrolls." Velvet and Coco seemed to like the idea; Ciel actually looked as if it sounded like a good plan. As for the blond, after having been told Coco would take the vacant apartment next to his, Jaune actually considered staying out more often. As for spending an entire day with these four, Jaune wondered if he was feeling well when he agreed to it. Coco, a bit irritated Ruby got the upper hand on Jaune again, was beginning to plan out what to do once at the mall. Ciel, wanting only to spend some time with her major, alone, believed it would be less awkward if more people went.

Jaune reached into his blazer's pocket and retrieved his scroll. His attention was focused first on Soleil. "Alright, if we're doing this then we'll need each other's contact info." The small group stared at Jaune before he mildly snapped at their blank stares. "What?"

"I didn't think you'd have a scroll." Coco mumbled.

"Yea, it's not like you to have one." Ciel added. "You mostly used earpieces for missions."

"It was Cinder's idea; she bought me it before the school year started. So, are we sharing info, or what?" In a few seconds they had managed to share one another's contact info, though, the blond accidentally skipped one. As he was putting his scroll away, he noticed Ruby with her scroll in hand, feeling somewhat embarrassed, he made an excuse for his small slip up. "Oh, sorry, I thought you wouldn't have a scroll." Ruby looked somewhat irritated and gave him a small pout.

"Why, cause I'm fifteen?"

Jaune, in another rare moment, snickered softly, and patted her head. "That, and the way you described your sister kind of painted a picture." Unbeknownst to the blond, Ruby mildly blushed as she made no protest over being treated like a child in this instant. It was, oddly, kind of sweet; almost as if watching two siblings interact.

"ahem." All eyes refocused to another blonde, her lilac eyes and unruly golden locks were something to behold. Though, her assets were probably what most students tended to notice with her shirt unbuttoned enough that the color of her bra could be made out. Ruby smiled and walked over to the girl and introduced her. "Guys, this is my sister, Yang Xiao Long. Sis, these are my friends; Jaune, Ciel, Coco, and Velvet." She gestured to each respectively. Though, her sister's eyes were locked on the fellow blond.

"Arc?" She asked, wondering if he was the one the rumors described. Once he nodded, hesitantly, Yang smirked. "So you're the BC kid, not really that impressive." She commented, irritating Ciel who was, surprisingly, held back by Coco with just the palm of her hand. "A 'Major'? Jeez that school is weird, my baby sister works her butt off, but they let you in? So are you any good, or did you get by on daddy's money. Lemme guess; you made a mistake, and instead of owning up to it: you ran?" Her comments were aiming to force the boy to act, though; he showed no sign of her words having any effect on him.

Rather, Jaune glanced to Ruby, then her sister. The youngest was in Class A, and this one? There lay a dynamic here; the youngest of the family was the prodigy, and the eldest was the troublemaker. Meaning, Yang was most likely not high on academics, though, that only meant her fists did most of her conversations for her. Testing her temper wasn't the best approach, though, if Ruby's words were anything to go by; she wasn't exactly thrilled to see some guy she doesn't know pat her younger sister.

"Wanna say something, blondie?" She cooed.

"Yang!" Ruby, while used to her sister's overprotectiveness, found her to be a bit overzealous this time. "Please don't."

Before another word could be said, a sudden ringing came from Ciel's blazer. The Sergeant retrieved her scroll, read the message and expressed worry over having to leave so suddenly.

"School?" Jaune asked, to which she nodded. "Go." He waved his scroll a bit in the air. "We'll talk later." With a mild blush, Ciel nodded, saluted him, and then, hesitantly, ran to the nearest transit stop. Yang had crossed her arms and rolled her eyes when Ciel saluted the blond boy. She didn't think her sister would fit in too well in Brigadier's, and having seen how these two interacted, she was glad her baby sister wasn't accepted. Speaking of Ruby, the teen found herself incredibly embarrassed over her sister openly insulting one of her friends. She wanted to speak out, but the words didn't leave her throat. Instead, she kept her head low and waited till it was over.

As Yang readied more insults to throw at the fellow blond, the school's bell rang, surprisingly early. Though, it did give Jaune an excuse to walk up to the distracted sister. When focusing her attention back to him, she was shocked to find him so close, though, what he said next would startle her even more.

"Be glad she didn't get accepted. She won't have to carry her 'mistakes' everywhere she goes." He whispered in her ear. Without waiting for a response, Jaune walked past both her and Ruby and made his way towards the building, both Coco and Velvet following behind. As Yang turned to her sister, she could picture what he meant by 'carrying his mistakes' and it didn't sit right with her. While she felt slightly guilty, Yang felt justified in her attempts to keep her sister safe, and yet, it seemed to be a one-sided opinion. Ruby, rather than face her sister after this, walked quietly and slowly towards her class, leaving her sister standing alone by the gate.

In the middle of class, Ruby stole glances towards both Coco, and to Jaune. The girl with shades seemed to doze off at times, her head was lowered enough and her hands positioned to give off the impression she was writing notes. Jaune, on the other hand, was extremely focused on Goodwitch's lesson. For a moment, Ruby felt as if, because of Yang, she had lost her first friend since coming to Beacon. While Jaune was distant and didn't show much emotion except annoyance and stoic, he was still her friend. Worried whether she should go to the roof again or avoid them, she began to feel alone again. Those long awkward years she spent alone in her last school, failing to make any friends while having any she might've had crumble at the hands of her sister. With lunch approaching, Ruby remained in her seat, believing her sister had made it extremely awkward for her to be around Jaune or his friends after what she said. While many students got up and began walking towards their hangout spots with their friends, she stayed in her seat. Sitting; quietly and alone. Though, upon seeing two figures stop in front of her desk, her eyes glanced up to see her friends.

"We're going to the roof again. You coming?" Jaune asked, unknowingly, causing Ruby to smile widely. Upon nodding, she nodded, grabbing her bag and walking side by side with her friends to their spot. All the while, a pair of green eyes were focused on them as they walked out of the classroom. More specifically, on the former Brigadier's student, peering over his files and humming to herself, the unknown rubbed the tip if her chin while wondering to herself. _'He'd made a great member of the student council.'_

 **I'm sorry for such a long wait, classes started up again but I will try to keep updates coming, it won't be weekly, but I'll try to keep them from being monthly...or longer.**

 **Real quick, for those who think I made Yang a bit bitchy, that's kind of what I was aiming for. She won't be forever, but just for now, this is her.**

 **Thank you all for reading I hope this chapter didn't disappoint, until next time.**


	6. Enlisting Anew

As the students of Beacon enjoyed their lunch, Goodwitch remained in her desk, reviewing the files of a certain transfer student. She had her reserves against the boy, considering her further reading into the 'incident' in BC, to which his name came up in multiple, available, reports. Though, she couldn't deny how useful it would be to have him contribute to Beacon's current issues. Perhaps, even, the student council, specifically; the disciplinary committee. The woman, while not always in agreement with the headmaster's decisions, believed this could be beneficial in many ways. Reinforcing her views were the comments made by the instructors whom the boy operated under.

'Disciplined leader, unorthodox methods, favorable results, enforces strong moral and loyalty, strict ethics...' there were more accolades, some complaints, and a report of a sole instance when, oddly enough, in a single instance the former Major being somewhat startled upon the cracking sound of a riding crop. Goodwitch, while not taking it too much into account, made note of this unique instance. She glanced to the students, all of whom went about in and out of the classroom, spending time with their friends and enjoying themselves. This school lacked little discipline, but having a separate party keeping both the students and the rest of the council in check, a non-professor party, would give the woman a small peace of mind, considering the rumors she was made aware of the year prior. Taking only a second more to think it over, Glynda rose up, gathered all of the files and walked to the one place she was certain to find the blond boy.

 **-Meanwhile, Beacon Roof-**

The initial part of their lunch was Ruby apologizing for her sister's attitude, Jaune, on the other hand, waved it off as something he expected from the fellow blonde. Either way, the young teen apologized. The majority of their time was, surprisingly; Jaune and Coco actually making conversation. Most of the topics were short and simplistic, but the two actually held a conversation together without annoying one another. Velvet, feeling relaxed with Jaune opening up to Coco, focused her attention of Ruby, who, much to her pleasure, was a gamer as well. Their taste in games was slightly different, yet they found similar interest in certain titles notorious for being furiously difficult. All in all, their conversation was, in all senses of the word; normal.

Meanwhile...

"I don't think that's what back massagers are meant for." Jaune commented, his face shifting from confusion and some small form of embarrassment, keeping his stoic expression above both.

"Well, when you're low on lien, some people get creative." Coco replied, a sly smirk was planted on her lips as she described an explicit topic.

"Can we change the subject, the child could overhear." Jaune gestured to Ruby, receiving a rolled up ball of paper thrown at his head.

"I heard that." The silver-eyed teen pointed out, again with pouted cheeks.

"Jaune, have you decided which club you want to join?" All eyes focused themselves on Velvet, whom seemed to be startled by the sudden attention she gathered from asking a simple question.

"Have you joined any?" He asked, to which she nodded and held up a slip for school club.

"I joined the game creation club." She announced rather proudly. While it wasn't much of a surprise that Velvet would choose that particular club, it was more surprising that such a club even existed in Beacon. Judging by the gleaming expression Ruby showed when hearing that such a club existed, it wasn't much of a leap to guess which club she would consider joining as well.

"So, have you considered any?" Coco directed the question back to the blond.

"None have my attention at the moment, but I-" the sound of the roof's metal door cut Jaune's words as all their attention was directed towards the sight of their homeroom teacher. The woman said nothing; rather, she walked up to Jaune directly and gestured to the stairway.

"Ms. Velvet, please escort Ms. Adel and Ms. Rose downstairs. Mister Arc, I wish to speak with you."

The small group of students was confused as to why their teacher would ask to be alone with the transfer student, though, perhaps the reason behind Goodwitch's request was the rumor of the BC student entering Beacon grounds for the former Major. Although, whatever she had in mind for him might've also been in the folder she held. With caution in mind, Jaune stood up, keeping a stern expression if having to handle this teacher. Both Velvet and Ruby showed a sign of worry, Coco, on the other hand, was uneasy over Goodwitch's intentions for him. The three stood and walked towards the stairway, Ruby took a quick glance back towards Jaune before waiting behind the door with Coco and Velvet.

After assuring the two were indeed alone, Goodwitch reached into her folder and handed a form to the blond boy. "As I am privy to student actions and activities, and while I am also aware that we have barely started the school year; I have been made aware that you have yet to sign up for a club. While it is not mandatory, considering your experience in BC, the headmaster and I felt your expertise could be put to better use in this." As the teen received the form; realizing it to be an application for a 'Disciplinary Division' he instinctively returned it. While startled by his instant rejection, Goodwitch refused to take back the application. "Mr. Arc, I strongly recommend you to consider applying, your dedication to your work in BC was praised by a number of your former instructors, granted, they also included mixed feelings towards your methods. And while your records have also made clear how...adequate your physical skills are, overall, in believe your knowledge would greatly benefit Beacon."

"Ma'am, with all due respect, I didn't plan on joining any club, let alone a Disciplinary committee. In all honesty, I didn't even know this school had one." The blond commented, taking a second glance at the application.

"That is because the Disciplinary Division is being formed officially this year." She fixed her glasses and continued her explanation in the hopes that the boy would reconsider. "I would choose someone else, preferably a student whose records aren't uncomfortably buried in so much black ink. A rather odd circumstance, considering the high recommendations written in by the headmistress herself." Upon mentioning the headmistress of BC, the blond somewhat tensed. Unaware, Goodwitch retrieved the Headmistress of Brigadier's report and read it to the blond teen.

"She writes; of the other leaders, in comparison, Arc, while hesitant and defiant, overall performs his duties to the letter. Obedient, strong-willed, loyal, disciplined, performs above average, gives satisfying results, works well with peers even with initial hesitance. So it continues with similar accolades, and after speaking with your Headmistress myself, the manner in which she spoke so highly of you and your talents-"

"Enough!" The blond raised his voice all too sudden, startling his teacher, while also placing him in a bad position for raising his voice. The woman, while initially taken back by the order to cease, her expression shifted to that of both anger and slight worry. The reaction he gave to these accolades was nothing of what she expected. Rather, she expected him to, at the very least, show pride in being given these praises. To him, however, they were nothing close to showing pride for.

Although, unlike Ozpin, Goodwitch wasn't going to brush off the idea of being told to shut up, more so by a student. Though, she found it extremely troublesome that her student would react in such a way to words that would commonly give a student great pride. Only now did she notice the small ounce of fear lingering in the blond's eyes, whatever occurred to him at BC, it left quite a lasting impact in him. Ordinarily, at first glance, she wouldn't think Jaune to show much emotion, save for annoyance and discomfort. Though, what he showed before her only reinforced her belief of controversial methods of teaching and punishment.

While keeping in mind that the boy probably went through quite a bit, she still didn't ignore his rise in attitude. "Mr. Arc, to what do I owe such an outburst?"

The boy, however, shifted his eyes, further angering, and encouraging, his teacher.

"You will not leave until I receive an 'honest' response." She smirked as she remembered a few key words that showed itself in all of the comments made by his former instructors; cold, blunt honesty. The boy would seemingly never tell lies, though, that could only be due to him being a possibly convincing liar. Be that as it may, her words would fall flat as the bell for the ending of lunch rung, forcing Goodwitch to return to her classroom. Noticing the blond teen quickly making his way towards the stairs, she grabbed hold of his shoulder, tightening her grip the sole moment he tried to break free. She leaned toward him and spoke, coldly. "See me after school." With that, she made her way downstairs, ignoring the three teens she caught leaning against the doorway. While walking beside countless students in the hallway, a ping of guilt sprang in her chest, her mind played out scenarios of the boy and his experience at BC; he didn't seem like the kind to cause trouble. But, the fear in his eyes was what caught her attention. While she would properly punish him for raising his voice to her, she needed to do so in a manner that would allow her to speak with him without the boy harboring ill sentiment towards her. As she was entering her class, she realized: if she wanted to learn anything from the blond regarding BC, or his personal experience, she would need to build trust with him; thankfully, she was to be the acting supervisor of the Disciplinary Division. With this, the two would need to meet regularly for the Division's plans and his involvement in the student council. Thus, it gave her a chance to appear to be on his side, building some form of trust. Though, it was easier said than done, the last person she knew who graduated from BC always seemed to avoid speaking of their time in that school. And what bothered her the most; they had the same fear in their eyes as the blond showed.

As her entire class was seated following the last bell, her eyes were fixed on the former BC student, who, at the moment, was avoiding any form of eye contact with her. While focused on her lecture and assuring the students were paying attention, she kept a fixed glare on the boy, and subtlety was not her strong suit. The students sent small whispers and pitiful stares towards the blond, feeling sorry for him and fearing whatever vendetta Goodwitch planned. Both Coco and Ruby were worried for the blond, more so since rumors of Goodwitch being unreasonably strict and merciless towards students who showed disrespect towards the school and the headmaster echoed throughout the halls.

Jaune, on the other hand, showed no reaction to his teacher's glare, nor did he care much for her Disciplinary Division. The entire reason he came to Beacon was to pursue his own career, far from anything similar to a military or assuming control of a group of people in the form of combat. Still, it did interest him to see the formation of a student-controlled security, specifically considering it would be hard to enlist students who wouldn't abuse, slack, or use their position as a form of espionage for another party, particularly a council of sorts. Over dramatic, it might've sounded, but such a thing wasn't improbable. Regardless, anything could happen with Goodwitch's project.

While Goodwitch wrote on the board, a small hand tapped the back of Jaune's blazer. He turned his head to which a note was passed to him. The courier was, for lack of better words, lacking in color with the exception of her eyes. Milky white hair, light blue eyes, porcelain skin, and an extremely small frame; something similar to Ruby. The note, rather than handed to him, was thrown unto his desk from the girl behind him.

Sighing in subtle annoyance, the blond retrieved the note and stuffed it into his blazer pocket, having no intention to get caught up in a similar situation to that of his first day. A small, almost if sounding offended, gasp could be heard behind him. For some reason, he glanced to Coco, who seemed to be withholding an urge to laugh. Rather than glance back to the girl behind him, kept his attention forward. Though, he could feel a foreboding sense behind him and in front of him was no different; what with Goodwitch giving him a mild glare every so often.

During their final minutes, as per most classes that finished lectures early, students were given free time. As students shifted around to speak with their classmates, the blond stayed reached was tapped on the shoulder. Turning around, the girl from behind him sat on the desk beside him before Coco could shift towards him. She shifted said seat closer to the blond, all the while giving him a small glare. Sitting awkwardly beside this unknown, Jaune was tempted to walk away, although, she began to speak. "You and I have matters to discuss." While it wasn't a reason to stop him from leaving, he'd prefer not causing a scene or pissing another person off. And yet, even with the two sitting beside one another, they neither spoke nor did they show any indication of attempting to start a conversation. That was, until, Coco sat on the desk in front of Jaune, Ruby sitting beside Adel. Sensing the awkward tension, the brown-haired teen spoke first. "If I may; to what do we owe the Heiress's visit to our little corner?"

Hearing 'heiress' narrowed down the list of candidates that popped into the blond's head, and judging by her appearance, he could give a guess as to whose family she belonged too.

Said heiress showed little interest in interacting with the two in front of him, showing more glances at the boy beside her. "I prefer Schnee. And If you must know..." she turned to face the blond, extending a hand. "I'd like to formally introduce myself; my name is Weiss Schnee, second child of current Schnee patriarch, and Vice President for the student council." She stated proudly, the blond showed no reaction, but rather, rolled his eyes.

"You say all that as if I cared." He bluntly stated, receiving a similar gasp from earlier. And a few chuckles from students nearby who overheard. Before giving a chance to respond, the blond shook her hand, further confusing her. "A name is enough for a formal greeting. Mine is Jaune Arc."

"I see." She responded, confused and slightly set off that her introduction wasn't received the way it normally was; with students in awe of her status and title.

"Now, going back to what my friend asked you..." seeing her sly grin widen, Jaune quickly injected. "Don't." While Coco made no comment, her grin ceased to fade. "Why are you here?"

"Aren't you usually with them?" Ruby gestured to a small group in the back, the majority girls, all of them seemed to easily standout from their classmates, particularly; Pyrrha Nikos, who kept her eyes on their table since their break began. Upon seeing them turn to her, she quickly glanced away.

"Well, today the student council received some news that has greatly worried our student president." The young heiress revealed. "Something, while not unprecedented, still came up as a surprise."

"The Disciplinary Division?" Jaune asked, to which Weiss smiled.

"So you've been made aware. Which means I can assume you were asked to join?"

Nodding as his response, the heiress smiled and clasped her hands together. "Well then, allow me to fill you in on the state of the current student council: President Pyrrha Nikos; Vice President, yours truly; Secretary Dew Gayl; Treasurer/Auditor Flynt Coal; and Public Relations Lie Ren. The five of us serve as the student council, and with the possible formation of the Disciplinary Division, that leaves us with an even amount of members."

Sensing where this conversation was going, Jaune sighed and finished for her. "With an even number of members, it makes for 'majority rule' relatively impossible, unless, said newest member passes their vote with the original majority party, right?" Knowing she wasn't subtle in her approach, Weiss still found it pleasant she wouldn't have to spell it out for him. Though, there remained a hinderance should their conversation seek to continue.

"Before I answer that..." she turned to Ruby and Coco with intense glares. "You two can leave." As if speaking to subordinates, and with as much distaste in her tone. Ruby showed clear signs of fear, Coco on the other hand looked as if she wanted to knock this girl's lights out.

"What'd you say?" Coco's words were more of a dare, knowing what would follow, Jaune attempted to calm her down before she went all out.

"They're not leaving." Jaune stated, earning him prideful smiles from his friends, and a mild glare from the heiress. His tone remained calm. "First off, you come to our table, throw your name at us as if it has any meaning, you piss of Adel..." a thud made the blond jump slightly, unbeknownst to the two teens beside Coco and Jaune, the boy had been kicked. "Which is my specialty mind you. And you scared Ruby and ordered her to leave. Secondly, I've yet to join and you've committed yourself to assuring you and your friends secure your power...actually, it's not all that surprising coming from a Schnee." His remark earned him an offended expression from the young heiress. "At this moment, I could care less for subtlety. Either speak your honest intentions, or do us the favor of leaving. You're beginning to annoy me."

Unable to find the words to challenge the blond's insults, Weiss huffed, rose up and left quickly. Leaving the blond to sigh in relief that she had left, Coco moved to his side and nudge closer to him. "Wow, you weren't kidding about that cold-hearted honesty, huh?"

 **-After School-**

Following the end of classes for the day, Jaune stayed behind, having no chance of escaping since Goodwitch was by the entrance, almost as if to assure he stayed for their meeting. Before she left the class, Coco whispered that she'd wait for the boy at the school's entrance. And yet, even Jaune didn't know how long he'd be here, taking into consideration he wouldn't be allowed to leave without explaining his outburst to his teacher. Speaking of which, once the students had all left 3A, Goodwitch closed the doors and walked over to Jaune's desk.

"Now then, Mr. Arc, I'd still like to know the reason behind your sudden rise in tone towards me during lunch."

The blond teen, however, reached into his desk, retrieved the application given to him by his teacher and took out a pen. "I have a proposition; I'll sign on with your Disciplinary Division, but in turn, I'd ask that you allow me not to give explanation for me outburst. I do believe I should be disciplined for raising my voice, but as for explanations, I'd ask to leave the subject unanswered."

For a moment, the two remained in utter silence, Goodwitch kept a fixed glare on the blond before asking. "While I normally wouldn't agree to any deals regarding my students, and these terms seem more in my favor than anything else."

"That was kind of the point, ma'am. Also, taking into account recent events today, I'm extremely curious of the ethics surrounding the student council." He explained while signing the application, receiving a mild grin from Goodwitch. Once Glynda held the application in her hands, she directed the blond to a room on the third floor, next to the staircase. At the top of the room's entrance was a plaque reading; Beacon Disciplinary Division. As the two walked inside, the blond noticed three computers against the left wall, two long tables in the were for the meetings held between members, the right side of the room held what looked like two separate rooms, perhaps as personal stations for the acting head and their right-hand, or interrogation rooms. Either way, the blond couldn't deny how nostalgic this made him feel. Though, the feeling wasn't entirely filled with joyous memories.

"Here." Jaune's attention focused itself on his teacher whom had in her hand a gold bar pin. "As the acting head of the Disciplinary Division, you will need to wear these at all times. This acts mostly as a hall pass, but I ask that you don't abuse it. Also, you will gain free lunches with this, access to the entire library and student archives. Again, please don't abuse the power I am giving you." Goodwitch's warning was clear enough, and yet, it made Jaune curious over one aspect he didn't receive an answer for yet.

"What of recruits, do I get to choose who I work with?" He asked.

"You may, but as the supervisor you will need to run them by me first. Oh, and I've taken the liberty to gather some files on students I want your division to keep a constant eye on." Glynda reached into her bag and placed a folder on the table before the teen, receiving a tired sigh from him.

"Targets already?"

"No, Mr. Arc, these are simply students who cause trouble on a regular basis, the purpose of these is to have your first recruits well informed." Upon opening the folder, he was somewhat surprised to see a familiar face as the first of the list.

"This doesn't surprise me." Jaune commented.

"Xiao Long? I'm assuming the two of you have met?"

Jaune nodded, only to add. "Can't say it was a pleasant first impression."

Checking her phone, Goodwitch reached once more into her purse and handed the blond a silver pin, and key. "The key is to lock and open this room's door. The pin is to signify the right-hand of the acting leader; you, basically. I trust you will choose a partner you feel you'd work well with."

"I'm allowed to choose my own right-hand man, without needing to run it by you?" Jaune asked, skeptical of his teacher's intentions.

"Yes." Goodwitch inhaled deeply, as if to prepare for a long speech. She assured the door had been closed, turned to the blond teen and spoke. "Mr. Arc, the reason behind the creation of this division is to keep tabs on the student council. Recently, I've been receiving disturbing rumors of certain members engaging in...questionable activities. While I have no proof, nor do I wish to make unfounded accusations and cause a scandal, I will need your team to keep your ears open to anything said or done around the council members. Aside from that, the duties of the Disciplinary Division are quite simple; uphold Beacon's code of conduct, keep students in line, and report to me." While not entirely what was at stake, Glynda assured she gave enough to give the boy a clue of what he just signed on for. As she had no further thing to say, she dismissed the boy, staying behind to ponder in her own thoughts. While Goodwitch was playing a dangerous game using a former military student as her espionage unit, she kept reminding herself, regardless of moral ethics.

 _'It was for the good of Beacon.'_

For the rumors she heard were nothing to brush off, and while she had no proof, the Disciplinary Division would act as her eyes and ears within the student council. If this rumor turned out to be true; she would have a military student and a small army of students. Should the rumors prove wrong; at the very least there was group keeping the students in check on a larger scale.

'Oh, I forgot to mention...I'll tell him tomorrow."

As Jaune exited the building, his eyes caught sight of brown hair with shades. Once Coco saw him, she smiled and waved towards him. Realizing a bit late, he too faintly grinned. "So the gate is the building door, huh?" He asked, to which the response was a light jab to his shoulder. Though, as the two were going to head home, the glimmering gold pin on Jaune's uniform kept their progression at a halt. Silently pointing to the pin, Coco waited for some form of explanation, fearing that Jaune had fallen to whatever Goodwitch had planned. For a simple explanation, the blond reached into his bag and handed a flyer for the formation of the Disciplinary Division. It didn't seem like a recruitment paper, but it did give notice that those of this division would be out and about after the end of the first week.

"So, our school has its own police now? And what, you just going to let anyone in?" Coco asked, skeptically.

"Not just anyone. I didn't get the chance, but I'm going to make it clear to Goodwitch and the student council; I choose my division members. No recommendations, orders, or threats will persuade me otherwise. And, after taking the chance to read up on one particular student, I have my right-hand in mind." Jaune commented. All the while, Coco smiled, picture how the blond would handle the student council. It would be fun to watch, but politics weren't her strong suit, considering most of the students on the council actually had family in politics. As the two were passing the gate, another flash of blonde lilac appeared from the right side of the gate, halting Jaune in his track. In a way, it was quite the coincidence, and luck he ran into this particular blonde. Yang on the other hand showed no pleasure having to stand before him. Before anyone could chip a voice in, Ruby appeared from behind her sister, worried her sister wouldn't do what needed to properly.

Yang took in a deep breath and shifted her eyes away. "I heard you defended my sister from the ice queen, thanks...I guess..." she mumbled, to which she received a jab to her lower back, curtesy of her younger sister. "FINE! I'm sorry for this morning!" She yelled out, easily since no other student was around. Though, Jaune's expression didn't change.

After no one said a thing, Yang showed small signs of anger, and obviously waiting for him to respond. "Right, I kind of forgot about that." His response wasn't anything she expected. "I just took it as an older sibling protecting their younger sibling. I used to do the same for my little sisters. It's not a crime to be protective."

"Exactly." Yang, for some weird reason, found herself agreeing with her fellow blond, smiling smugly at her little sister who didn't expect this result.

"But, that doesn't mean you should intimidate her friends, she'll only end up resenting you for being too involved." Jaune added, to which it Xiao Long lost any ounce of pleasantry she had left in her. Rather, now the two seemed to have a somewhat suffocating atmosphere around them, it wasn't one of hostility, rather, two older siblings with different opinions and stances on how to look after younger siblings.

Meanwhile, Ruby snuck over to where Coco stood, whispering in her ear. "I didn't know Jaune had sisters."

"Neither did I." Coco admitted, though, she knew now.

Taking only a moment more to glare at the transfer student, Yang turned away and was about to call to her sister when Jaune spoke first.

"Before you go, would you mind hearing me out on an offer?" In a way, she was caught off guard. She didn't expect him to actually want to talk to her, but for him to offer something? Curiosity pushed her to accept and walk alongside him as her sister walked a by far behind with Coco. Both teens were somewhat confused and curious as to what the two blondes had to discuss in private, having only Yang's facial expressions to go by, they kept their eyes on the female blonde to see how the conversation went. It wasn't until she started laughing loudly that the two behind were startled. It grew evermore confusing when Yang nonchalantly hung her arm around Jaune's neck.

"You're kidding me, right? You can't honestly expect me to accept that offer." She taunted after receiving Jaune's invitation to join the Disciplinary Division as his right-hand. To any student, this would obviously be taken as a joke, a troublemaker being given a position like this; it would either be seen as nepotism or something shadier. "And why would you choose me?" As a response, Jaune reached into his bag and pulled out the file on Xiao Long. After showing her the report and additional comments made, she scoffed lightly and handed it back to Jaune. "Even more of a reason not to consider me."

"On the contrary." Jaune began with trying to unhook her arm, though; he found this one to be similarly matched in terms of strength with Coco. He tried removing her arm many times, much to her pleasure as she held him tighter. "Would you mind letting me go?"

"Convince me."

"What?"

"You asked me to join your little club, but I have half of the teachers giving me the stink eye daily, convince me to join. Unless, you have someone else in mind. As for letting you go...nah, this is fun."

Jaune sighed, not as much annoyed, being somewhat used to this. He had given this some thought, taken what Ruby had told him, what Octavia and Sun mumbled at home, and what little Goodwitch spoke of.

"It's come to my attention that you catch every ounce of rumor and gossip that flies around school. Whether true or not, it's important to be updated on what people are saying. When you stick to something, you stick with it till the very end. Annoyingly stubborn and eager when properly motivated." He emphasized on 'motivated'.

"Ah, so you've been speaking to my baby sister about me, I'm flattered." She teased.

"You're also hot-headed, and tend to go berserk when someone insults your family, particularly your sister. Especially this year since she was placed in a class above you. Not to mention, you have quite the record for breaking bones...though, it seems someone else seems to have broken more legs than you. Almost like a disturbing game."

"Teachers too." She mumbled. "Oh, and I know that 'broken legs' chick, she's actually pretty cool."

'Are all the girls at this school unbelievably strong?' The blond boy cursed in his head.

"But, these don't necessarily give you reasons to trust me." Yang pointed out, to which, her comment was reinforced.

"You're right, but I don't trust you."

"...say what now?"

"Every part of me brain is telling me to think of someone else to be my right-hand, but I have a few reasons I'd like to have you sign on and I have some ways to convince you; firstly, you get free lunch from the school's mess hall."

Almost immediately, Yang appeared to be swayed. While Jaune never ate the lunch the school served, he heard it was pretty expensive, so it had to be worth the money. Though, just as quickly, Yang shook her head and smiled slyly.

"Heavy hitters already, huh? I like it so far, what else?"

"You'd have a better reason to look after your sister without her having to complain, and you can 'explain' to any guy who hits on her; she's not ready." He whispered, further gaining Xiao Long's attention. "After all, if Ruby tells them she's not interested, and the guy keeps pressing; that's harassment, right? You can't have your sister having a bad high school experience; besides, there's nothing wrong with a few bruises to count as warnings."

Yang's grin grew as her right hand rubbed the rip of her chin. "Damn, gotta admire that older brother mentality. So far, I like it, but I'm still not convinced. Why don't you tell me the real reason you want me to join." She finally let go of the boy, causing him to stop, thus stopping those behind them, yet still out of hearing range. "You said in the beginning; you don't trust me, so tell me what's pushing you to enlist me. The real reason."

Mildly impressed she caught on, "To keep an eye on you." Jaune admitted, openly. "I skimmed through the list of individuals I was told to keep an eye on, yours, along with a few others, were flagged with red ink. Having someone like you on my side would put my mind at ease, and shorten my list of people to scout for. In all honesty, where most people focus on academics, I'd rather see what you have to offer. In my experience, it's always interesting to see how resourceful people can be, especially when no one expects much from them."

Yang was surprised with his honesty; it was something she didn't expect. Granted, she appreciated it, and, in some ways, it was partially convincing her to join. "So, blindly, I'm putting my faith in you, granted, it's a stupid move if I look at it logically. But, I did something similar to this when I was attending Brigadier's." Now this surprised Yang. "Instructors warned me not to enlist her as my second, but I did it anyway. I didn't trust her at first glance, but I put my faith in her after getting to know her better."

"And how did things turn out between the two of you?"

"Well, if it wasn't for her trying to convince me to go back to Brigadier's yesterday, I couldn't give you an honest answer." A few gears clicked as Yang now understood why a BC student was seen strutting around Beacon the day prior; she was this boy's lieutenant, here to bring him back to his original position. Meaning he left that much on an impact on his former team.

Jaune leaned over towards her ear, causing her to blush mildly. "Also, you'll have authority over the council members too. And, considering first impression, I'm not intending to give them an easy ride this year." Hearing this, she was sold. She gave him a sly smile and asked one last question. "I can get any lunch I want?" Once the boy nodded, she grinned. "I'm gonna level with you; I don't like you, but I'm not a fan of the student council either, and I like the idea of screwing them over and…having an excuse to spy on Rubes."

"Just don't overdo it." Jaune mumbled, reaching into his pocket and retrieving the silver pin.

The blonde girl retrieved the pin, showing some sense of pride in her eyes while grinning widely. "Can't promise anything. Although, I gotta ask, that girl who came for you; do you trust her now?"

"With my life."

Seemingly accepting his response, Yang gestured her sister to her side. Once Ruby was beside her older sister. Surprisingly, the two departed on good terms, leaving Ruby and Coco to guess what kind of conversation the two had. Though, if their exchanges were anything to go by, there were no lingering hostilities between them.

Ruby and her sister making slow tread towards their home, glanced to her older sister whom was grinning somewhat eerily. Mostly since Ruby hardly ever saw her sister smile so much. It creeped her out, but not as much as how full of pride Yang showed when examining her silver pin. While having no idea what the two blondes talked about, nor did her sister have any intention of filling her in, Ruby was left to wonder. Yang, on the other hand, took another look at her pin while her mind wandered back to her conversation.

 _'I'd rather see what you have to offer.'_

Almost as if being challenged, and if anyone knew Xiao Long well enough, they knew she would never back down from a challenge. Still, for the boy to make such an idiotic move and enlist someone like her to a Disciplinary unit, she chuckled lightly at the reactions her family would give her. Granted, she didn't like the idea of having to stick by the rules, let alone enforcing them. But, it almost seemed as if Arc had other plans for the Disciplinary Division. If anything, her informants could get her dirt and details of certain students, the added Intel would give their division an advantage, still, for some strange reason, she couldn't help but feel an odd chill crawl up her spine.

As Jaune and Coco walked towards the complex, unlike the two sisters who departed their company, they spoke quite a bit. While Jaune didn't mention anything of his conversation with Xiao Long, the two did talk over separate issues, one being how they were going to regulate Velvet's gaming time considering she showed determination to pass her current game. Especially since she was staying up late playing. For a second, Jaune felt a chill crawl up his spine, his head turned back to the school, a seemingly headache inducing voice pinged in his head. He sighed, feeling a sense of intense work coming his way soon enough.

 _'_ _So much for a normal year.'_

 **And done, sorry this took a while to finish, I've been backed up on assignments lately, but now I'm catching up with my stories the best I can. Also, while I said this would have a slice of life AU, that is still in effect and will remain, there will be some more action later on. Thank you for waiting, I hope you enjoyed your read, until next time.**


	7. Recruits and Secrets

**-Jaune's apartment, night-**

After dinner, Jaune had decided to study for the following day's lecture, all the while his eyes glanced to his gold pin, sitting idly beside his scroll. His curiosity had pushed him to actually join this club, though, what kept him uneasy was his decision to choose Ruby's older sister as his second. Granted, many would say it was a brash move, but he wasn't lying when he said he did something similar in BC; Ciel's file was something similar to Yang's. While the two had obvious differences about them, one thing they did share was their tendencies to go berserk if pushed far enough. Though, what Jaune didn't say was the fact that his entire division was made up of 'delinquents', so to speak. Students whom were mostly known for causing trouble or having little skill go barely make it by. A decision such as this made leading his troops all the more difficult, and yet, it paid off surprisingly well. While he didn't exactly act friendly with them, nor was he adored by them, there was still a show of respect between them. Throughout his discharge, those who were forced to watch showed clear signs of holding themselves back even after the whole ordeal had ended.

Jaune massaged, softly, what he could of his back. Months had passed, but the wounds healed slowly. Feeling the fabric beginning to itch his skin, he stood up and removed his shirt. Glancing towards his shoulder, he noticed what remained of his discharge; a constant reminder of what he endured in BC, both throughout and in his last moments. A small mirror beside his closet allowed him a full view, while not entirely muscular; there was enough to show for a former military student. Years' worth of training, and it all amounted to this; a shamed solider, carried out his duty to the letter and yet scorned merely for daring to speak out.

"Fall in line, and you'll survive." Jaune echoed the words told by the headmistress on his first day. His eyes burned with anger as images of that woman flashed in his head. It made him sick to remember the jobs he did for her, all the in name of 'progress, many more for her own leisure. While the students ran drills and played the role of recruits in training, few were actually selected for actual military operations. None too risky, but safety wasn't always ensured. Covering it up was easy, living with the fact that the death was on the hands of those who led the mission was harder. Although blurry, he remembered how many were lost to one of the division leaders for her first mission. While the details were hazy, he could still remember clearly the expression on the fourth division leader's face when she received the full report. In remembering her, Jaune recalled the 'Incident' in BC near the end of his second year. A mission was launched by the headmistress, one that he had no pleasure in carrying out, but did so anyway.

A sudden ringing sound from his scroll broke the blond's trip down memory lane. He glanced to the number dialing him, not recognizing it; he ignored it and looked to his closet for a more comfortable shirt. In his search, his scroll rang again, taking another glance; he noticed the same number from before. Feeling somewhat annoyed, he picked up the scroll and sent the caller to voicemail. Jaune resumed his search, that is, until the ringing scroll went off again, it couldn't be Coco since her number was already registered in his scroll. Sighing, annoyed and tired, he answered. "Hello?"

"Yo!" Came the voice of someone he never expected to receive a call from.

"Xiao Long, how did you get this number?" He asked, calmly.

"I might've peeked into Rube's scroll." She admitted with a hint of playfulness in her tone. "It's pretty easy to unlock, she uses the same password for almost everything. It's worrying, but also convenient."

"I can't say I agree with how you handle things, but I admire you for being a devoted sister to Ruby. I have to admit, even with your constant overprotectiveness, she might look up to you, so much so that maybe it would be best if you looked after yourself a bit more. It's none of my business, but respecting her privacy might add you some points...also, the way you dress doesn't set a good example, not to mention it would be troubling for a member of the Disciplinary Division." Unknown to both teens, the lilac-eyed girl was smiling, blushing lightly.

"You sure don't beat around the bush, 'ey chief?" Yang joked lightly, chuckling.

"I make a point to never lie." Jaune commented, giving way for a sly smirk from Xiao Long.

"Really now? So, chief, what do you think of my baby sister?" If Jaune didn't know any better, the itching feeling of hostility in Yang's tone might've gone unnoticed. Regardless, it didn't change his response. "She's a smart kid, shy, and genuinely innocent. But I can't give you a longer response since I don't know her all that well. Maybe this Friday I'll learn a bit more."

"Friday?"

"Your sister suggested going to the mall with our group, something similar to a hangout. That's why we exchanged our contact info today. Didn't she tell you?" Jaune asked, wondering if he let the cat out of the bag, considering Ruby probably withheld this info hoping to not have her sister follow her.

"No, she didn't. We have Friday off, right? Some kind of campus inspection?"

"So I hear. My friend from BC tells me the same thing, there's a campus inspection there too." In that instance, Jaune said something that surprised even him. "Wanna go with us?"

Inwardly facepalming, Jaune could only wonder what possessed him to ask that, but now he just had to wait from an answer. In truth, while she didn't know him all that well, Yang couldn't deny she wanted to go to keep an eye on her sister, and possibly get to know her new boss.

"Sure, I'll tag along, but if anyone asks; you invited me."

His response was a small grunt, continuing his search for a more comfortable shirt while having his scroll on speaker. "By the way, is there a reason you called?" He asked.

"Oh! Right, i heard some interesting things about the student council recently; gossip mostly, but a juicy bit that involves us and the division. It turns out, the student council is pretty pissed a Disciplinary division was not only created without their prior acknowledgment, but they're even more pissed that the acting head was already chosen. And by they; I mean, more along the lines, the ice queen."

"And you heard this from?" He asked, skeptically.

"Heard it from one of the council member's friends; Octavia Ember. She's my source for most of my info on the council."

Jaune couldn't admit to being surprised to hear this, but this raised further questions considering Octavia had friends in the student council.

Yang continued. "The little heiress was pretty vocal, it's no secret; she hates not having her nose in everything that goes in Beacon. I have no idea how she convinced Nikos to let her join her on the council." Yang rambled on of the young Schnee's need to be dominant of others, though, the blond boy was focused more on how he would play his role on the council. He would have to keep Yang from stirring up the heiress, but he also needed to set an image to the council; the Disciplinary would answer to no one but the headmaster. Briberies and intimidation would have no effect, but that's why he enlisted Xiao Long. Glancing to his bag, he remembered taking the folder filled with the list of individuals Goodwitch wanted him to keep an eye on. While Yang kept rambling, Jaune took another glance through the names of those highlighted with red ink. A few seemed to fit the bill for students to keep an eye on; some seemed to be placed in this category simply for one major event. He reached for his scroll and interrupted the blonde girl.

"Xiao Long."

While halting in her rambling, she continued playing with him. "Aww, that's no fun, boss. Call me Yang, if we're gonna work together this year, we might as well drop the formalities."

Jaune ignored her playful nature and flipped back to the first file in the folder. "How well do you know the students in the school?"

"I can tell you what I've heard, what I've seen, and what the teachers say. Personally; not very many close friends. But I can dig up everything you need." She admitted. "Why?"

"I'm gonna read off some names, i need you to gather whatever information you have on those I call out. Also, I want you to meet me early tomorrow, before school." He replied sternly. "We're going to start recruiting."

 **-Next day, Beacon gate-**

Following their conversation, Yang had dug up whatever information on the names Jaune listed the day prior, to her surprise; they weren't exactly the type of people you'd expect in a Disciplinary unit. Nonetheless, she did her best, looking up what information was available for her to gather in a single night. Standing by the school gates with her sister early in the morning was unusual, for Ruby that is. She didn't think her sister would be the one to drag her out this early; it was usually the other way around. Oddly enough, she couldn't help but notice the silver pin on Yang's uniform, which was another thing; her clothes weren't as loose as they usually were. Granted, she still dressed in a manner that gave some people a generous peek, but she seemed a bit more professional, to some degree.

"Yang, no one is even here yet, why are we?" Ruby asked groggily, yawning loudly following her question.

"I'm meeting up with someone right now, he told me to meet him here before school." She answered, gaining rolling eyes from her sister.

"Another confession?" Ruby was used to her sister being confessed to, though she still wondered why she was always dragged into them. 'A learning experience' or so Yang would say. Though, she always turned them down.

"If you wanna call it that."

"Who is it?" Ruby tried feigning an interest, but having been used to the outcome of these scenarios, she couldn't really care less anymore.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Her sister teased with a sly smile. Though, to be honest, she became increasingly curious to know why her sister was this eager to reject some confession. As she yawned once more, she noticed a familiar trio approaching the school. Before she could call out to her friends her sister approached first. She held a hand up, grinning widely.

"Hey chief." Her words directed to the fellow blond wearing a similar shaped gold pin.

While Coco and Velvet seemed faintly wary, they were surprised when the boy returned the greeting. "Morning. You ready?" After Yang nodded, the boy bid his friends farewell before beginning to walk towards the school. As the passed the still startled Ruby, Yang winked subtly at her, nudging closer to Jaune while attempting to start conversation.

As the two walked into the building, the remaining trio by the school gate were left to wonder what just happened. The day before, Yang and Jaune didn't seem to get off on a good note, far from it, but after watching this, Velvet and Coco were immensely confused. Ruby, on the other hand, came up with a conclusion that made her blush. _'Jaune is confessing to Yang!'_

Both blondes entered the Disciplinary Division's room, Yang whistled in amazement when she noticed the size and gadgets at their disposal. She explored the HQ a bit while Jaune walked towards a large desk near the window, presumably his desk.

"Yo! We have an interrogation room?!" Yang called out from what Jaune guessed to be the observation side. It was all impressive, but if Goodwitch had all of this installed, it meant she predicted an event big enough that an interrogation room would be necessary. And if so, she didn't warn him, at least, not entirely. Granted, she did point out her information was founded on anything. But if it led to this, there was some basis for her fears. Noticing a small letter on his desk, Jaune retrieved it and read it while Xiao Long walked to his side. In a mere second into reading, his eyes narrowed to a particular section of the file, a faint smile formed as he glanced to his Lieutenant.

"Something wrong?" She asked, somewhat put off by his grin.

"Well,I have two sets of news; first off, you'll have to accompany me to the student council room right now. We have to formally introduce ourselves today."

"And the other?" Yang asked, uneasy about having to go with him to some meeting where she has to sit by and listen to some heiress talk non-stop. Though, when she was expecting an answer, Jaune gestured her to follow him. While Yang wasn't one for surprises, she couldn't deny she was curious of whatever was in that letter that led to the boy actually smiling.

The walk towards the council room was a bit awkward considering a few minutes prior, the school was empty, but in the time it took them to inspect their Division HQ the school was filling with students. A few students were actually staring at them, for whatever reason, more so how close the two walked beside one another.

Yang felt guilty for leaving Ruby earlier, especially since she wanted to drag her with them. But now that her sister was reaching out and gaining friends of her own, Xiao Long felt a bit relaxed. Still, if those people still considered Ruby their friend after the words Yang threw at Jaune the day prior, she felt more at ease leaving her baby sister in their hands.

As the two neared the student council room, Jaune began fixing his tie, assuring his uniform was clean and proper. He turned to Yang, sighed, and gestured to her unbuttoned shirt. While her bra wasn't visible, it still left quite a bit for an imagination. She chuckled lightly and buttoned a few buttons, still leaving just eye candy open. Knowing he wouldn't win, nor did they have time to argue, Jaune opened the door to the council room. From the head count the young heiress gave the day prior, it seemed like they were all present. Nikos was reviewing a few files with the young Schnee. When said heiress saw him, her expression formed a small glare. Nikos on the other hand smiled politely.

"Good morning, I'm sorry but we're a bit preoccupied at the moment, could you possibly come back later, please." Nikos tone was that of exhaustion and forced cheer. The amount of files on her desk showed how overworked she must've been. Granted, it baffled the blond as to what exactly she had to deal with. The other members, save for the heiress, were either mildly curious or uninterested. The only one who seemed interested was one with a pink strand mixed with his black hair. His eyes were focused on the gold bar on the newcomer's chest.

"My name is Jaune Arc." Weiss scoffed at his introduction, refocusing her attention to the pile of paperwork. "Captain of the Disciplinary Division." At this announcement the attention of the council members was now his. "I was instructed by our supervisor to introduce myself to the student council." Jaune retrieved the letter left for him, Nikos walked up to the blond, any trace of courtesy lost to a barely withheld glare.

"Yes, we were recently made aware of your division's formation." Weiss walked up to the president's side with a less than subtle glare.

"Good, then I'm sure you've been made aware of our position on the council?" Both Schnee and Nikos seemed unwilling to acknowledge a party they were just given without warning, both for separate reasons. It would worsen when Jaune handed the letter to the president, hesitantly receiving it and reading its contents, her eyes widened as she reached a certain section that greatly bothered her.

"As it reads, by order of the headmaster, the Disciplinary Division now holds two seats on the council, those two belonging to my lieutenant and myself." This declaration made the young heiress glare intensely at this newcomer. The others showed some signs of extreme confusion and worry. Pyrrha couldn't remove her eyes from the letter, the words used to describe her council made quite an impact on her.

"Miss Nikos, are you aware of why we were created without notifying you or your cabinet?" Jaune asked, gaining no response from the student president. When she failed to respond, he answered. "Our purpose is to keep students in line and uphold our school's code of conduct, nothing more, and nothing less. This also means the student council is equally within our reach, the only individuals we have to answer to is the Headmaster and our Supervisor. I'd also like to leave you with a word of warning; should we feel you're not doing the job given to you, we have, within our right, to remove you from your position." His words rippled, creating a sense of fear in those around him. Pyrrha's expression no longer showed hostility, but rather, that of fear and shock. She didn't think Goodwitch would go to such lengths, and yet, here was her creation; threatening her. To add to their confusion, the blond boy smiled, unsettling the council members. "But, that doesn't mean we can't work together. After all, if you're doing your job, there is no reason to be afraid of us. I look forward to, hopefully, a healthy partnership." He extended his hand, catching the student president off guard. In the hopes of avoiding any hostility between the council and the Disciplinary Division, Pyrrha was going to accept his offer of peace...until

"You can't be serious?!" The small heiress made herself known, quite loudly. She placed herself between her friend and the blond boy, which was somewhat interesting considering both parties, had to literally look down to face her. "You come here, throw your name and title like it's a big deal, you threaten my friend and you expect some form of partnership?!"

"Sound familiar?" Jaune asked, to which the heiress turned red in an instant, with her pale skin it was made all the more obvious. Yang was finding it hard to withhold her laughter. She would've handled the heiress a bit different, though, she liked how her fellow blond made the little girl silent. Nikos acted quickly, moving Weiss gently behind her in the hopes of avoiding further hostilities.

"I'm also hoping for a healthy partnership." She held her hand, Jaune shook hers firmly, both with half smiles. "Oh, and if you'd like, I know some people who could benefit the Disciplinary Division." She hoped to a least get off a better note by offering some assistance to his division, but, that proved fruitless when the blond boy shook his head.

"That won't be necessary, my recruits will be chosen by me and me alone. No recommendations, nor forced entries." He stated the last part quite firmly. "Also, before continuing, allow me to introduce you to my Lieutenant." When Jaune gestured to Yang, the Schnee heiress actually lost her balance right after dropping the stack of appears in her hand, seemingly close to fainting. Nikos was increasingly shocked, and worried, considering the fact that this Division had power well above her own and her list of enemies wasn't short. Though, what worried most of the council were the incidents involving Xiao Long and her reputation for constantly engaging in fights, earning her the nickname; the Brawler. Simple, but it said enough. When they heard a Disciplinary unit was being created, the last person they expected to see in their ranks was Xiao Long, amongst another select few. All in all, it was safe to say the Disciplinary Division made quite an introduction to the council. Whether it left a positive impact or not was for anyone to say.

During lunch time, which was awkward to say the least, Xiao Long was seated between her sister and Jaune. She said nothing in the beginning, though, it was noted that Octavia and Sun decided to join the small group for lunch. After the news that the Disciplinary Division was created with its leader and lieutenant already in position of power within the council, many rumors and gossips spawned. More so when the names of the two individuals was made known, Jaune wasn't much of a surprise considering his experience with military training, though, what was surprising was his lieutenant; Xiao Long. For the majority of class, he could faintly hear students gossip away in class, silently. As for Goodwitch, Jaune had to avoid any eye contact as he could tell from their first glance that she wasn't particularly thrilled with his choice for a right-hand. Understandably, students began fearing that the Disciplinary Division's lieutenant would abuse her new title. Adding to it, she had a seat on the council, even the teachers began to spout out gossips of their own. For Xiao Long, the attention wasn't anything new, but she wasn't exactly thrilled to have people look to her as if she were something similar to Winchester; a well-known short-minded boy who used his family name to keep from being expelled for his discriminatory actions against the Faunus students. She spent the entirety of her class time avoiding the stares of her classmates, throwing a few glares when she felt annoyed. After scaring a few people, she began wondering if she acted to quickly in joining this division. The idea of pissing off the council was tempting at first, but now knowing her new responsibilities, she wondered if she'd be able to handle it.

Sitting between her sister calmed her, but when she glanced to her the pin on her chest, she still felt some sense of pride in her; she not only became part of something, she had the opportunity to make her father proud. Upon glancing to her captain, he ate quietly and with a stoic expression.

For some reason, she noticed Adel kept invading his personal space, granted, Xiao Long did something similar the day prior, she couldn't help but notice how the blond boy would tell her to get off, and seemingly not care whether she did so or not. As for Coco herself, if being completely honest with herself, Yang rarely saw Adel smile so widely. Granted she was teasing the transfer student, but more often than none, Coco rarely showed interest in anyone. In fact, considering how much more Jaune and Coco spoke to one another, and the issues Adel has against the student president, it surprised her that she wasn't the first candidate for Arc's lieutenant. And then her mind returned to the names Jaune asked her to look up, many of them were indeed 'troubled' as the teachers would often say. The majority of them were in classes C or D. When she heard Jaune say they would be recruiting, she could only wonder if the boy was going to enlist the people she was asked to look up. If so, a pissed off council would be the least of their problems. While Xiao Long didn't particularly like Jaune in a sense, she found him to be interesting, mostly in the way that he would come up with a logical solution, and yet go with a plan that has a higher chance of failing. Assuming of course, he does enlist these individuals.

After lunch had ended, the two blondes made their way to the Disciplinary HQ, both were excused for purposes of attending to school business. Jaune sat across from Yang as she sat silently, waiting for him to make a sound or move. The two were silent, save for the sounds of birds from outside. Yang leaned back on her chair, wondering what they were going to do that counted as 'school business' and if her fellow blond was going to be upfront with her on his intentions for the progression of this division. Though, her answer would come, quite literally, through the door as a knock on their door was heard. Upon Jaune calling them to enter, six students entered, each of them walked awkwardly into the Disciplinary Division HQ, each wondering what they had done to be sent here. Jaune arose from his seat while gesturing his partner to do the same. Yang did so slowly, walking with the boy towards the group of students' each waiting for answers as to why they were there.

Jaune took a moment to look over the six that entered; the one that most caught his attention was a behemoth, a young man whom had to duck just to get through the door. While slightly intimidating, he seemed more visibly timid than those around him. The others were different in their own right, one of which didn't show any fear towards him, regardless of his mild glare.

Jaune glanced to Yang and gestured her to come to his side. When next to him he finally spoke. "Let's start with a brief review. Their names and why they're on the list." He handed her a folder with a list of student names highlighted in red ink, presumably those like her; ones that cause trouble.

"Right..." Yang glanced to the first student and, without needing to read the list, she started with each student in their respective order. "Sage Ayana, third year class C, most known for consistently causing fights, ditching class, and breaking professor Port's nose." The boy looked as if proud with the way he was described. Jaune moved on to the next student.

"Arslan Altan, third year class C, she was in Class B the year prior, but she was bumped down a grade on account of one count of possession. Normally, a student would be suspended with a pending investigation, but there aren't any records of suspension. She was given second chance by the Headmaster himself though. There are rumors she still...uses, but no proof has been found as of yet." As Jaune stopped in front of the young teen, her eyes were glued to the floor; the shame in her eyes was easily detected. Though, the blond boy showed no hostile glare towards her, rather, a faint express of pity. She glanced up slightly, expecting him to show disgust, but there was no show of hostility. He moved on.

"Yatsuhashi Daichi, third year Class C, aside from his intimidating size, there's only one incident with him breaking the wrist of a student with very little effort. In fact, he says he wasn't trying to fight back. According to him, he just pushed the kid away. That's some push. Other than this one incident, some people actually say he's a pretty nice guy." The young man, though the same age as his peers, towered the majority of them in height, possible even able to touch the ceiling without having to extend his arm too much. He did his best to show no sign of fear, though; the wavering eyes gave him away. In all honesty, Jaune was the one who felt intimidated just by standing before this kid. They were the same age, but his body seemed in a hurry to reach the sky for some reason. Moving on...

"May Zedong, third year class C, not a lot on her, she tends to keep to herself, only incident recorded is when a guy got too pushy on asking her out; she dislocated his shoulder. That and she ditches more often than not." The girl had a beanie covering her left eye, her eyes drifted towards anything but the two blondes standing in front of her. The sight of turquoise and the sound of gum popping forced the blond captain to move on.

"Reese Chloris, third year class D, constantly breaking dress code, bringing her skateboard to school despite the standing ban, and made herself well known for sneaking into the school for New Years and lighting fireworks off the school roof. Said fireworks strayed towards the ground and started a small fire on the grass field." The girl grinned widely, clearly showing no sign of guilt or shame for her actions, similar to Sage. Lastly, for the list of candidates...

"And Blake Belladonna, third year class B..." Yang actually glanced to the files in her hand for this, and yet, she failed to find anything that would have the recruit in the red inked section. "There's nothing on her, and she rarely speaks so no one knows anything about her, not even the teachers have anything written on her...why is she on here?" Yang searched through the folder in case she misplaced the file, to which the blond boy added. "I'd like to know as well."

All eyes were now on the two stoic teens, neither made a sound. The amber-eyed girl had a reputation for having said almost nothing since she enrolled in Beacon, and that wasn't going to end here. Yet, what followed next was something she didn't expect from someone of a supposed 'Disciplinary Division'.

Jaune sighed and turned away from her. "If you're not willing to say, I won't push you." Most teachers would've attempted to get her to speak, but this kid didn't try, nor did he actually seem to care regardless. Blake's shoulders slumped; relieved she didn't have to deal with another person trying to get her to speak.

He blond boy took one last glance to those with him, took a moment to think over the next choice of words he would use. The six teens became rather uncomfortable, wondering what exactly they were in for being called to this place.

"Just by being listed in the red section alone, with a single word from this division, should we believe you to be threats to the student body and the school; we could request to have you six expelled." The six students all shot fearful eyes at the blond boy, Yang actually looked at him with startled eyes when he made that threat. She didn't think he'd persuade them to join with a threat, yet, in all fairness she could've expected it considering what he did with the council.

"Our duty is to monitor the student body, and with your names on our high priority list, it would make our jobs easier to just kick you out." He spoke those words with no sign of remorse or jest in them. Ayana seemed as if he wanted to lash out, perhaps throw a punch or two. Both Zedong and Altan almost looked as if they were on the verge of tears. It didn't surprise the blond to see their reactions, and it didn't give him any pleasure to see them like this, but he was far from done. "In fact, I'm beginning to wonder why you've been allowed to stay at this school considering what your records tell. You six aren't the only ones on that list, but you've been picked out for two reasons; first, you're on the top of the red listed students a red flag alone, but that'll make this job all the more easier should you accept my offer." His words gave some sense of hope, a possible means of, perhaps, bargaining or a final warning. The blond boy gestured for his lieutenant to give him the files, when she did he retrieved six applications from the back of the folder. He placed them on the table behind him, moving aside as to make room for any of the six that would accept his offer.

"I'd like you to join the Disciplinary Division." His words lingered, each student stunned with the offer given to them. They unanimously believed this to be some joke, there was up way a Disciplinary committee of any kind would actually ask them to join said division. When the captain showed no sign of jest, Sage grinned and shook his head.

"No way, you can't be serious? You threaten to expel us, and then you ask us to join your little club?"

"I never said I would be the one to expel you." Jaune responded.

"You said-"

"My exact words were; we could 'request' to have you expelled. The only one in this school who can deal that punishment is the headmaster. I even made it clear; our job is to monitor the students. You don't have to join; I'm merely stating that it would be easier to keep an eye on you if you were in the Disciplinary Division." He bluntly admitted.

"Getting a bunch of bad people to do some good? Now that's just stupid." Sage commented, already feeling the need to walk away from this.

"It might not be if it's done right." Yang hoped to assist Jaune in convincing these people to join, though, he surprised her yet again with his response.

"No, he's right, it's stupid. There's a possibility this might blow up in my face, hell, I'm having second thoughts as we speak. I might have second thoughts even if this is a success. But I'm not asking you to do some good, at least not entirely." Jaune admitted, in many ways surprising the teens in front of him. The blond reached into his blazer and retrieved a pen, placing it gently on the table beside the applications. In all honesty, he didn't expect these six to accept his offer. But, he still had one card to play. Just in time as well, Sage and Blake were beginning to walk away when the blond spoke up.

"Just as I have the ability to request expulsion, I also have authority to request certain incidents to be removed from your records, should you perform your duties to the letter." By now, he had caught the attention of both those still in front of him, and those nearing the door. "While I won't lie and guarantee to have all of your records expunged, by actively working in this division, the headmaster might be convinced to assist in removing as many obstacles to your future as he can. It should come as no surprise that these records will prove to be a nuisance after graduation...if you graduate." Jaune's words hit deep, each of the six knew quite well what would be waiting for them with those records following in tow; endless rejections and doors closed to them.

"Disciplinary members also get free lunch." Yang inserted, hoping to lighten the mood. To which, it somewhat did. Reese and Yatsuhashi seemed greatly interested in this bonus.

"Breakfast, lunch, and dessert; basically anything from the school's menu." Jaune added, his tone lightened just a bit. Noticing Sage still attempting to leave, the blond boy threw the last bonus he knew would convince the majority of these six to join. "And no one is off limits." Just as Sage's palm was to grip the door knob, his hand hovered idly, as if actually considering the offer. "The council has no authority over this division, but keep in mind; the only people you will answer to is me, the headmaster, and our supervisor. And believe me when I say this; I will not go easy on either of you. This will not be a place where you can sit and relax, should you join, it will feel an actual job. With some benefits of course." Jaune ended with as light a note as he could, though, he refused to sugar-coat what was to be expected of these teens. For split second, it sounded like a sweet deal; however, it wasn't enough for one. Belladonna still walked out, possibly back to her class. In all honesty, Jaune was somewhat disappointed, he intended to convince all six to join his division, though, that still left five. To his surprise, Zedong was the first to approach the table to fill out an application. Following, respectively, were Arslan, Yatsuhashi, Reese, and lastly Sage. Belladonna's absence left one last candidate they could enlist, one of which Jaune had attempted to avoid recruiting. Though, given her influence, and strength, having her on their side would prove beneficial. The five remaining, save for Ayana, were less nervous and more relieved to a degree, wondering how their involvement in this program would help them erase certain spots on their records. For Jaune, he honestly could request to have certain incidents removed, but there still remained the possibility that his request would be rejected. Regardless, should this group of teens continue their involvement into their senior year; it might look like admirable enough on their records. Delinquents their beginning years, later involve themselves with keeping students in line; irony, and with a high probability of failing. But, if there exists a chance of succeeding, it was worth risking his chances.

 **-After school, Beacon campus-**

As the day came to a close, sight he school practically empty, and Goodwitch having not appeared once since she was told Xiao Long was the Disciplinary Division's lieutenant, the five new recruits returned to their HQ for a quick debrief of their duties and activities they'd need to perform. For a moment, it almost seemed like this was a normal meeting, that is, if having seen them at first glance. Having known what most of the students in here had done, it began to resemble a gathering of Beacon's infamous individuals, each of them either well known for their strength or lack of care for their actions. It was rather frightening that these five were to be part of a Division in charge of regulating student behavior. Adding to an obvious observation; ironic.

Ruby, Velvet and Coco awaited their friends inside the main building. Having found out their friends were now members of the Disciplinary Division, Ruby rushed to sign up for the Game Creation club alongside Velvet. Coco, having no interest in joining any club, remained waiting with her friends as they spoke of what they would do in their new club. After a bit of waiting, and entire water bottle gulped down, Ruby quickly excused herself to head towards the bathroom, oddly, on the second floor, since the first floor was always closed for some reason.

Within the Disciplinary HQ, with Xiao Long reading taking measurements for new uniforms made specifically for their division, Jaune excused himself for a small bathroom break. The blond, lost in his though, wondered if his luck had changed. Granted, he knew enlisting these particular students would have a ton of pressure brought down on him, not to mention there existed the possibility of his father coming for him. Not out of care or worry; but to keep his legacy from being stained.

Finding the third floor bathroom locked, he headed for the second floor. Descending down the stairs, Jaune was still plagued with the image of having to return to his father's side. There were reasons his father sent him to study, away from his siblings. He didn't hate the idea of studying abroad, it was the fact that he'd been sent away since he was seven. Almost ten years away from his family, having only seen them on holidays only strained their relationship further. Thinking back on it, Cinder was closer to family than his blood family. Cinder, to anyone's surprise, did in fact raise him, both with a firm hand and equally exciting personality. Jaune was grateful for her parenting, when he could understand her through her slurred words. Still, at least she was there for him when he needed her. Or at least, when he would let her in. There were some things he preferred keeping to himself, some that he felt better not to speak to anyone about. Specifically Fall, there were enough people who looked at him with shame, he didn't want her to as well. As he reached the second floor bathrooms, the blond, firstly, checked to make sure he was entering the boy's bathroom, while he didn't believe anyone was still in school the last thing he needed was his luck giving him the short end of the stick by walking into the girl's bathroom by accident for not paying attention. Though, he did take notice of a sign placed below on the side of the door. 'Stalls out of order, Urinals only.'

"First the third are closed, now this. What kind of..." As he, quietly for some reason, entered the bathroom there was a light squeal as his presence was detected. What he least expected, in fact, never expected; was staring at him with widened eyes. Whilst holding a...flaccid, slightly visible object, the figure hugged close to the urinals. Both they and the blond boy had no words to say to one another. Rather, they found it extremely awkward, and embarrassing to say anything at all. The silver eyes that stared at him with fear and shock were what kept the blond in place, were the other bathrooms locked? And was the thing in their hand really what he believed it to be?

Following a sudden buzzing noise from Jaune's scroll both snapped back to reality, though, only Arc made a move; for the door. Having never dealt with this situation before, he bolted quickly. As he exited and shut the door behind him, he noticed Ayana descending from the third floor. Upon glancing to his captain, the boy waved subtly before walking his way.

"Yo! Are the ones on this floor open?" He asked approaching ever closer.

While not fully returning to his casual demeanor, Jaune shook his head. "No."

Ayana frowned at receiving the news, though just as quickly, sighed. "Damn, no surprise there, they almost never open the bathrooms. Later then." The boy shouted back before descend to the ground floor, leaving Jaune to lean against the bathroom door. With his heart pounding fast and his face engulfed in pure red, he attempted to make a fast walk towards the stairs, though, as he was beginning to walk away, a hand caught his blazer's sleeve. Stopping only for a moment, he turned slowly to face a crimson-faced classmate holding him from a half open door, somewhat hiding in the bathroom, on the verge of tears and scared beyond belief. He had nothing to say his classmate; he didn't know what to do, or what to believe.

"...D-don't t-tell..." His classmate's secret, by sheer bad luck, was unconcerned by him. All the while, his expression softened. "P-p-please don't tell." She begged, gripping tighter as the words managed to escape her mouth. "I'm begging you, Jaune." Tears were now beginning to roll down her cheeks as she used a free hand to wipe away her tears. While she was distracted he could easily break free, but then, it would only make the situation worse. This was awkward, immensely, and he couldn't look at his classmate the same way. However, in her eyes, he could see something similar to what he saw in himself many years prior; the fear of being scorned, and abandoned. She begged him not to speak of this secret, but first, he needed to verify something without causing any more misunderstandings.

"What did I see?" He asked, at first monotone, and momentarily stopping the flow of tears as his classmate gazed to him with initial confusion. "Tell me what I saw, Ruby?" When no answer came Jaune attempted to gently remove his hand from her grasp, unintentionally, frightening his classmate into holding on tighter. Even to the point that the blond pulled hard enough that his classmate was forced from hiding in the bathroom. Upon exiting the bathroom, he could clearly see the fear in her eyes. He didn't want to hurt this girl, nor would he dare considering her sister was a floor above them. All he wanted was to know what he saw. Ruby continued to hold a firm grip on his hand, refusing to let him leave her side, though, her tears resumed falling as her head tilted downwards.

"I...I was...born a...a...I'm...a...b..." She stuttered, afraid to confess, and even more afraid of what he would think of her should he know. She continued holding on, hoping, with every ounce of faith in her, that he wouldn't reject her.

Jaune, having pieced what he could from her stuttered words, sighed softly and made an attempt to ease the poor girl's stress. "Ruby…please don't cry." Yet, even if she didn't want to, Rose's tears continued flowing to the point where she began sobbing. Feeling immensely guilty for making her cry, the blond, while against the act, held Ruby in a light embrace. The act itself startled the young teen, considering she never expected this from Jaune. Her head was pressed against her classmate's chest, the beating of his heart and warmth of his embrace soothed her, momentarily. She felt the palm of his hand place itself gently on top of her head.

"I'm sorry." He whispered. "If it's something you don't want to tell me yet, I understand. I won't ask or bother you about it. I will be honest with you; I'm not used to this kind of thing, so things might feel awkward for a bit. But, our friendship, that hasn't changed. Not to me." There was silence between them, neither Jaune nor Ruby made a sound. The two stood in an empty hallway in complete silence, that is, until the sound of Ruby's arms wrapping themselves tightly around Jaune. While catching him by surprise, he could feel her head pressing tightly against his chest. The feeling of her arms pressing tightly against his back stung a bit, though, his mind was focused solely on his hurt friend. Feeling her return his embrace felt…odd, to say the least. Jaune had felt extreme guilt, but in all fairness, he didn't expect to see what he did. Still, he was relieved that Ruby wasn't crying anymore, that is, until he heard light sobs again. Before he could say anything, a faint whisper from the young teen said, quite clearly.

"Thank you."

 **And DONE, wow, I really hope this chapter was worth the wait, and sorry to drop this little bit of sorrow, but I'll be working on the next chapters for my other stories until I've caught up. Rest assured, this story IS NOT on hiatus, but the updates will be a bit slow, so please bear with me. So yes, if you haven't caught it, I've added some more dilemmas and drama to the fold. It'll be explained a bit more in the coming chapters. Hopefully you enjoyed this read, stay tuned for the next updates, and until next time.**


	8. Friendly Outing

**-Fall complex-**

Following the incident that occurred that day after school, the blond kept to himself the majority of the time that followed on his walk home. Neither Velvet nor Coco could get a word out of him, each wondering what had occurred that left him in such a silent state. The only thing they could think of that could've been a cause was seeing Ruby return from the second floor and, without exchanging a single word, rush pass her friends and straight for her home. Leaving the two at the entrance both confused and concerned more so due to the reddened eyes Ruby had as she ran. When the rest of the members of the Disciplinary Division finally descended from their meeting, they noticed how lost in thought he appeared as his new teammates bid awkward farewells to one another. Upon noticing her little sister gone, Xiao Long rushed to her home quickly, lightly punching Jaune's shoulder as her way of saying goodbye. Though, it served merely to break him from his train of thoughts.

When they reached their apartments, Jaune walked towards Fall's room. Feeling uncomfortable around her new manager, Adel went straight to her room, Velvet following her friend. Upon entering his manager's apartment, the blond was welcomed to a familiar sight; Cinder was sitting in her living room, watching some program on tv, half naked and an alcoholic beverage in hand. She glanced a bit towards Jaune, somewhat surprised to see him, though, not so much that she gave him full attention. He'd stop by once in a while, neither ever spoke much, and it was almost always quiet until dinner time. His visit, however, would turn out quite different this time around.

Having, finally, no shadow over his shoulder telling him how to act of behave, the blond found himself dealing with decisions and emotions he wasn't entirely sure he could handle. He knew he needed to adapt to his new life, but, breaking from his shell would be the hardest. Accepting people, but keeping them at a distance would prove to be an easy task. Being alone was still preferable, he enjoyed silence and order, uniformity and discipline, but the events that followed these first few days of his new life bombarded him with scenarios and emotions he wasn't sure he could handle alone. He slowly accustomed himself to being around people, similar to the times he was around his Division in BC, but none of them ever got too close to him. He kept his emotions to himself, expressing little by little. However, with what occurred that same day; the final straw had broken.

"So, how was your day? Anything interesting happen?" Fall asked, knowing she wouldn't receive much of an answer, if any beside a grumble or hum. Having never done this before, he clenched his fists, swallowed his pride, and spoke as monotone as he could.

"...I thought of my father today." For that instance, he felt... odd, for lack of a better word. He wanted to continue talking, but his pride regained hold and kept him from delving further. He glanced slightly towards Fall who was staring at him with a startled expression, midway through her drink when she received an answer to her question. In a single minute of silence, the blond took it upon himself to continue. A mild blush arose as he felt a wall cracking little by little. "I can't say I miss him, but a thought came to mind; I want to know why he pushed me so hard. It bothered me during a meeting I was attending. During that meeting, for some reason, I remembered him taking me to one of his company gatherings. Displaying me, his only son, as if I was some sort of trophy. And during that meeting I…I don't know why, but I actually began to see myself in his shoes. I felt sick, and then I...wondered if...if I meant actually anything to him." Jaune found himself sharing more with Fall than he ever did with anyone in his life, and she didn't interrupt, rather, she payed close attention to his words.

As if her prayers had been answered, Fall was finally having a decent conversation with him. Her right left hand fumbled around the empty couch seat for the remote. Once getting a grip on the control, she turned off the tv and gestured him to sit down with her. He did so; his manager showed full interest in whatever he had to share with her, anything he had to share. However, when she expected him to speak further, he remained silent. "And...how does that make you feel?" She asked, treading lightly as to not have him retreated back to his silent mode.

"I don't know...I'm disappointed...I guess. I hated the idea of him getting his way, but I hated being a failure in his eyes even more." He admitted, keeping his eyes away from any sort of contact, keeping a grip on his emotions proved difficult now that he wasn't forced to be strict and restrictive every second. Sharing this much felt unnatural, his fists clenched tighter, Jaune felt his stomach turn, he wondered if sharing with his manager was a good idea. Speaking to someone about this was alleviating, but it also made him feel vulnerable. He felt himself wanting to just shut down and head back to his room. That is, until a cold can was pressed against his cheek.

The woman pushed it further until he received it, an alcoholic beverage similar to the one in her hand. As Jaune shot her a questioning glare, she shot him a mild glare back.

"What prompted you to share this with me?" She asked before taking another sip of her drink. Jaune, glanced to the cold beverage in his hand, asked himself that exact question. Taking a mere moment to think it over, he gave her as honest an answer he could.

"I don't want to keep living in the past, it's easy to fake a smile and laugh, but they're the same as lies...and I hate lies." He uttered those last words with great disdain. Had it been anyone other than Cinder, the atmosphere would've taken an awkward turn.

"So you came to me?" She asked, somewhat playfully, and with a hint of pride in her tone.

"You went to BC too; you know how it feels to have your future planned out. When you had enough you went out on your own."

"And I turned out great, huh?" She remarked sarcastically. Inwardly, she facepalmed. Here was the closest thing she and to a son, opening up to her, and she still went off with her antics.

"I just want to move on, and deal with whatever comes my way the best way I can." He responded. Cinder felt relieved that Jaune was actively adapting himself to a new life. Even more so; that he came to her seeking help to become more social. Granted, she didn't deny she still had some regret over breaking ties with her family, but she was determined to live with the decision she made. They were the same in that regard; too much pride. At times it was an admirable trait, though; it wasn't without its many faults.

"It's probably been said a thousand times but the beauty of life is making mistakes; when they're made, you learn from them and you, in turn, adapt to similar scenarios easily. The important lessons I picked up; I learned through failing, multiple times too. In addition, I dealt with whatever caused strange emotions at my own pace, and the best, rational, way I knew how." She answered with a mild grin.

"And if I can't deal with it rationally?"

A widened grin grew on Cinder's lips as she answered proudly. "Wing it."

 **-Jaune's room-**

Laying in his bed, Fall's words remained with Jaune, the idea of going through life without a plan, in all honesty, scared him. Maybe some people preferred living like that, but he wasn't accustomed to that, and yet, the prospect was tempting; to live life in the moment, no plans. It would make life just a bit more interesting.

A buzzing noise refocused his attention to his scroll, the ID revealed the person he least expected to hear from. Feeling things would be extremely awkward between them; Jaune thought Ruby would avoid talking to him for a while. Opening his scroll, Ruby's text popped up.

 _'Hey, can we talk?'_

In all honesty, Jaune wanted to say no, he didn't know what to say, nor did he have enough time to process what he saw today. He even told Ruby that she could tell him the full story when she was ready, but it was mostly for him; he didn't know how to react to this. He wasn't against it, but he also didn't feel like he could hold a conversation without unintentionally saying something awkward or painfully stupid. While thinking of something to say, another message came in.

 _'But not over the phone. Tomorrow, when we hang out, can we talk in private, please?'_

And just like that, his luck seemed to actually be giving him a chance.

 _'Sure.'_ He replied, placing his scroll down and wondering how he'd play it out the next day. He wasn't lying when he told Ruby their friendship didn't change, he still wanted to be friends, but he was just confused as to how to feel over the situation. Most would say; just accept it. He would accept it, but he just needed to adjust to it. Though, it presented something troubling; if she meant to keep it a secret and by chance he discovered it, then there presented further risks of her being discovered again. In normal circumstances, he'd just let this slide and deal with it when it came time to. But, his mind wouldn't let him.

He sifted through his contacts until he reached a name he knew he could ask for help whilst not arousing suspicion for obvious reasons. Though, as he was about to text her, surprisingly, a call came in.

Upon accepting the call, before being able to respond, a loud voice boomed from his scroll.

"CHIEF!" Holding his phone a few inches away until the voice calmed, Jaune placed the scroll against his ear.

"Evening, Xiao Long."

"EMERGENCY!" Another shout blasted, causing the blond to flinch slightly.

"If you shout again, I'm going to hang up."

"...sorry..."

Although the blonde girl lowered her voice, it was odd to receive another call from her, right after her sister texted him. Her tone expressed concern, yet, Jaune wasn't sure he wanted to listen to her rambles at the moment considering what was on his mind. Still, by answering her call, what would come next was not entirely up for him to decide if he wished to listen to or not.

"I need to talk to someone right now..." her tone indicated an increasing sense of worry mixed with a bit of sniffling, possibly over exaggerated.

Jaune sighed and replied. "...I'm listening."

"See, it started when I got home from school...I went to see if Rubes was okay since she left early, but when I tried to check up on her she told me to go away!"

"I would too if my sisters peeked into my phone whenever they wanted." Jaune shot back playfully, yet somewhat monotone.

"I'm being serious! Ruby's never told me to go away before! Something's bothering her but she won't tell me!"

Jaune held his scroll a few inches away from his face, "You're raising your voice again."

"Look, Ruby seems to have an interest in you and your group of friends..."

"Makes sense, we are friends after all." Jaune added, placing the scroll back against his ear once the girl had lowered her tone.

"I need you to...s-s-s-spe...spen..." Xiao Long kept struggling to utter her next choice of words, which for her were anything but pleasant.

"Spend time with her?" Jaune finished, to which he instinctively held his phone out again.

"YES! WHY IS IT SO HARD TO SAY?!"

A moment passed in absolute silence, neither side spoke. That is, until the blond boy felt the need to finish this before dinner. "Xiao Long?"

"...I thought you hung up." Replied a whisper.

"I was going to, but...I also need to ask something of you; I need you to dig up any and all you can on the student council members, personal bios and rumors surrounding them." His tone was as stoic as ever, though, if listened ever so closely, one could imply that there was a hint of anger in his voice.

"That's kind of easy, most of them have family in big businesses...actually, come to think of it, I don't think I've heard of Lie Ren's family affairs."

"Look into it, and while you're at it, I think I know a way to get Ruby to open up about what's bothering her." Jaune's voice had a sense of confidence in them, somewhat irritating Yang.

"So you have an idea about what's bugging my baby sis?" She asked with a daring tone, waiting for him to say the wrong choice of words. Wrong they were.

"I do, but I can't tell you."

"Why?" Barely withholding anger, Xiao Long was sure nothing he would say next would stop her from raging. Right she was.

"Spoilers." He replied in a teasing tone.

"JAU-" the blond had hung up, just as he said he would when she raised her voice. After delivering his message, he no longer hand an incentive to keep talking with his lieutenant. Though, that didn't stop the bombardment of text messages from her. Most were death threats warning him not to take advantage of her sister, few were of graphic depictions of what she would do to him should he make Ruby cry. Surprisingly, there was an actual apology for her outburst...followed by a reinforced threat she made regarding making her sister cry. All in all, receiving nonstop messages for over ten minutes was interesting to say the least. Once it seemed like Yang had calmed down, Jaune retrieved his scroll, only to find a text sent by Ruby in between the colorful threats Yang made.

 _'You ok?'_

 _'Yea, why?'_ A few seconds passed when he received a reply.

'Walls in my house are thin, and when Yang texts she speaks it out first.'

Jaune chuckled lightly, picturing how worried the parents of Xiao Long must be hearing their daughter speak so graphically. Or, there was the issue that they were used to her outbursts.

 _'Yang just wanted to blow off some steam. She's your sister, you should talk to her.'_

 _'That's probably not a good idea.'_

 _'Why?'_

 _'She'll rush to judgement, and I want to handle this on my own.'_

 _'That's really grown up of you.'_

Ruby's reply text was a mixture of pouting faces and a sentence that made the blond chuckle. _'I am a grown up. I drink milk.'_

 _'I don't see how that fits into being an adult, but I'll take your word on it.'_

Oddly enough, the response was a smiling face, followed by a number of more texts, all of which relating to video games and comics. While nervous as to the amount of social topics thrown at him, Jaune found enough incentive to continue his chat with Rose. Much to his surprise; he found himself smiling at most of her stories and antics. Granted, while he knew of Ruby's 'situation', he still found her to be innocently cute. Much like one would view a younger sister. She had her mature side, but showed more of a response to clean entertainment than to that of raunchy humor. The two texted for almost an hour, the conversations ranged from the subject of Grim Souls to the game Ruby brought up in class. The young girl would ramble, sending text after text; Jaune would simple reply with short sentences, or a single word for a reply.

The only break the two had was when their respective families called them for dinner. Velvet was asked to retrieve Jaune, though, when she retrieved him, she was surprised to see him faintly grinning. While she had seen him smile before, it didn't last long, what remained unnerving was the fact that he was smiling all throughout dinner. The tenants all glanced to one another wondering if anyone had an answer as to why the usually stoic blond began to show an actual, lasting emotion. Only Fall, which in many ways irritated the oldest Malachite twin, was unaffected by the boy's change in behavior. Rather, she showed a great hint of pride, believing her words earlier might have made some effect on the boy.

For Ruby's family, her mood had lightened a bit. Her sister was staring at her the majority of the time, though; their father was quick to break the silence with his 'jokes'. Relatively, things didn't feel out of order, that is, except for the rather large grin the young teen had when her father asked if she had made friends in her new school. While happy that her sister made some friends, Xiao Long didn't exactly sit right with the idea of having something relating to her younger sister kept from her. Specifically if it made her cry, and what pissed her off was that Jaune possibly hand an idea of what was bothering Ruby, and, to top it all off, he decided not to say a thing to her. Luckily enough, the boy invited her to tag along on their little trip the following day, meaning she'd have a chance to thoroughly interrogate the boy and find out if he's hiding something regarding Ruby.

 **-Citadel, Valen shopping district-**

A collection of faces were mixed in with the small gathering of friends outside the newly built shopping mall, each ranging from utter fear from their youngest member, confusion from their bunny-eared companion, awkward smiles, and a stoic expression. Ciel was dressed in her casual military uniform, letting it known that she had literally nothing else but her uniform and track suit. The others, for lack of better words, were close to casual as can be. What made the atmosphere uncomfortable was the mild glare Yang was throwing Jaune's way, all the while, he showed little care whether she was mad or not. Before deciding to head out on their hangout a unanimous decision was made to eat before checking out the stores. Xiao Long pulled the fellow blond aside while the others were busy checking out the food court. Once they were a good distance away, she hooked the blond closer whilst withholding any rage in her being.

"Ok, here's how things are going to go; I'm going to distract the others while you...sneak away with my sister." She finished with what felt like poison in her mouth.

"Don't push yourself, Yang." Jaune's words were more along the lines of messing with her, though, if fell as the blond brawler was momentarily caught off guard with him calling her by her first name. Regardless, it was momentary.

"Shut. Up." She warned, increasing her grip. "You find out what's bothering her, and then you tell me. Got it?"

"Yea, but I'm not going to tell you anything she doesn't want me to tell you." Jaune added, which, in hindsight, was probably phrased better in his head. With Yang's increasing grip, he could feel the lack of air in his lungs. "Funny how you can say something in your head and it sounds fine." He managed to mutter between his grasps for air. "You can't expect me to gain your baby sister's trust, and then spit on that trust by telling her older sister what she wanted to be limited to just her and me?"

While she hated his logic, she did find some reason in it. Her grip relaxed, though, she kept him close so to relay one last note.

"Look, there are things about my sister that I'd prefer she be open about, but I respect her decision to keep to herself. Especially considering the assholes at our school." She whispered with much venom dripping in her tone. "All I'm asking is that if she tells you something, give me a heads up so I can help her...and try to keep an open mind." Upon letting go of the blond boy, he, rather than show annoyance towards her overprotectiveness, gave her reassurance.

"On that, you have nothing to worry about." As he walked back to the group, Yang just stood in her position, wondering whether to feel comforted by his words, or worry that the two were not on the same page. Either way, she intended to stand by her sister, that was a given. But, if Jaune were to keep an open mind to her situation, and if by chance he chose to stand with Ruby and support her, maybe she'd be more willing to open with who she was.

Following a quick snack break, as promised, Xiao Long actually managed to distract the group by taking them to a nearby clothing store. Her reasoning for being there was to 'update Soliel's wardrobe' as she bluntly put it. There was hesitance and resistance, though it quickly crumbled after an unexpectedly motivated Coco joined in. Both she and Yang, quite literally, carried the Brigadier student into the store, Velvet following closely behind to assure they didn't go too far in their little escapades. Jaune and Ruby, on the other hand, were left in their dust just outside the store. Seizing the opportunity to speak with his friend, Jaune nudged Ruby while gesturing towards a bookstore.

While not the ideal place to browse around for fun, at least for Ruby, the fact that it was empty gave them an ideal place to speak privately. Though, it was hard to do so given that Rose spent the majority of her time browsing through the comic sections, ignoring the fact that her classmate was with her. Or rather, purposely ignoring and avoiding any attempts to start up the conversation they agreed to have. Not that the blond was exactly pushing for a conversation, but on the one hand, he knew they needed to talk, and this issue wasn't going to just go away.

"Hey, Ruby..." he tried starting the conversation, although.

"Check it out, the new Kegi comics are out. The art is amazing and funny too. But the proportions are a bit excessive, at least in my opinion. I guess that's just their style." Ruby intended to dodge the talk all together.

He tried again. "Listen, Ruby, I'd prefer if we could-"

"Oh, we should see if they have any of the Grimmiore Novels. Those books give you more insight on the lore for the Grimm Souls series." She interrupted again. Now, as a former commanding officer, patience was something Jaune was well known for in Brigadier's. Sadly, this wasn't Brigadier's and he wasn't an officer anymore.

"Rose." His tone was somewhat harsh, and with little patience. Ruby jumped a bit, her head hesitantly turned to face him. Once her silver eyes met his, he spoke again. "Of all the things that set me off; asking for a conversation and then avoiding me is something that I have no patience for. We can either talk, or head back with the others and drop the subject all together."

Ruby's eyes dropped to the floor, her expression shifted through various feelings. "I...I don't know what to say." She whispered, not too soft. "I knew what I wanted to say yesterday, and I had a lot to say over the scroll...but right now I don't know what to say."

"Why am not surprised..." Jaune muttered ever so low. "Look, just take your time, I won't pressure you, and we have until the others figure out we're not with them so...quite a bit actually, I just found out Coco gets really...intense when clothes are involved." He groaned after remembering how much of a headache Adel gave him the night prior with her going through his wardrobe and trying to prepare him for this hangout.

Ruby giggled softly, somewhat surprising the blond. "I know how that feels, Yangs the same way. She actually helped me with my whole wardrobe, and it wasn't all fun, especially when my dad got involved." She laughed a bit, remembering moments of shopping with her family.

Seeing her smile, oddly, unintentionally forced a rather small grin on Jaune's part. "I fear for the day Coco actually asks me to go shopping with her." He commented with a slight shudder.

Ruby glanced around and bent closer to his hear. "Hide in a book store, always works for me." She whispered. Though why she felt the need to do so was anyone's guess considering they were alone in the store besides the otherwise occupied clerk.

"I'll keep that in mind." And again, like the night before, the blond was oddly at ease. The situation didn't bother him as much as it did before, and their conversation drifted further away from the original intent. Although, all things considered, he'd give Ruby the time she needed. Though, one of his first questions for the young teen was if he could tell Xiao Long he knew of Ruby's secret. To which, she agreed, fearing her older sister would actually go through with her threats. The two would continue their talk, and surprisingly, after making a small purchase, the two decided to explore a bit until the girls were done with their…project. Their first stop, unsurprisingly, was a gaming store. The young teen lost herself in the endless selection of games, gushing over the many new releases, and fawning at the nostalgia of some of the older games. Jaune, on the other hand, remained on the sidelines, acting more like a babysitter, assuring Ruby didn't get lost or go overboard. In all honesty, it was amusing to see her acting like this; it made him feel like an older sibling.

It was funny thought, at least to the blond. He chuckled softly to himself, wondering what it was like to be an older sibling. While he did have sisters, he never really got to know any of them. They lived with their father; Jaune, the only son, that he knew of, was sent away to earn his family name. Case in point; his siblings were more strangers than anything else. Should they actually have to meet, it would be gatherings or due to their father, and that was it.

Seeing her companion smiling to himself prompted Ruby to ask. "You feeling ok?"

He nodded, responding simply with. "Yea, just lost in thought."

 **-An Hour later-**

While the girls waited near the food court, a blushing Ciel kept herself hidden behind Velvet the entire time. In a surprise twist, the girls didn't go too far and it was Velvet who chose her outfit; a cream-colored dress reaching to just past her knees, similarly colored heels, and a ribbon attached to the left side of her head. A simple style, but, it was the one that she chose to wear once they left the store, especially considering Yang wouldn't let her leave the store without one of her new outfits. While they didn't go all out, there was still a variety of clothing the girls picked out for her.

"That was actually more fun than I thought it would be. She's adorable to dress up." Coco commented.

"I still think the ribbon is a bit much." Yang added, to which Coco subtly nodded.

"I think it's cute." Velvet defended.

"I think I should've stayed in my quarters. What will I need with all of these cloths?" Ciel remarked, to which she received a confused expression from Xiao Long.

"Well; for casual moments, special occasions, and your dates with Jaune." Her answer, while blunt, showed its effects rather quickly. Soleil was a blushing mess, she had jumped from behind Velvet with a mixed glare/embarrassed expression.

"W-w-what are you talking about!" her embarrassment, while amusing to the blonde, was something Yang didn't want to test considering she was a trained military student. If the wrong buttons are pushed there's no telling how far Soleil would take things. Although, as she was to explain what she meant, Xiao Long failed to notice the displeasure of one of their members over the oncoming subject matter.

"Look, it's pretty obvious to ANYONE; you like him. So, I'm gonna help you out." Xiao Long declared rather proudly. "Now then, first things first; we gotta teach you the power of showing some skin." She stated whilst using her hands to lift her considerably bust chest, her shirt was generously unbuttoned, giving anyone a rather criminal view of her bra. Although, both Velvet and Ciel were deep crimson in blush, whilst Adel shook her head at the starter plan the blonde had.

"Oh, this won't end well." Coco mumbled.

"What won't end well?" All eyes turned to the two missing members of their group, each with a bag in their hands. Noticeably was a beanie on Ruby's head in the form of a wolf with ebony fur, crimson eyes, and a white mask…odd for a wolf, but it was an interesting concept. She waved to her friends with a gleeful smile while Jaune stood behind her with a curious expression.

Ciel was frozen in place, she didn't move, or rather, she couldn't. The way she was dressed was anything short of embarrassing for her, although, she waited with bated breath, wondering what exactly her Major would comment on her attire.

If she was hoping he would stare at her, then she was getting her wish. Upon seeing his former subordinate in her new attire, Jaune couldn't help but stare at her. It wasn't until he unconsciously muttered 'cute' that he was brought back to reality by his new subordinate with a light punch to his right shoulder. "Damn right she's cute, I picked out her cloths!"

*cough*

" _We_ picked out her cloths." Yang corrected while gesturing to Coco. The two stood behind Ciel, preventing the crimson blushing girl from hiding behind Velvet. All the while, she kept her eyes glued to the floor, unwilling to face her Major.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Ruby shouted, gaining everyone but Soleil's attention. She reached into her jacket's pocket and retrieved an envelope. She smiled nervously while handing it to Jaune. "Here, I forgot to give this to you a few days ago. It's from Ciel." The mentioned teen's head snapped up, her eyes locked on the letter in the hands of the blond. She wondered why he didn't respond, she even began to fear that she didn't actually give him the right letter this time. Jaune held the envelope up to the light, smiling when he confirmed the contents.

"Is there something in there this time?" Coco asked with a faint sly grin, to which Ciel's blush brightened again.

When Jaune nodded, the girls waited anxiously, though, they were disappointed when he put the envelope away. "Aren't you going to read it?" Ruby asked, to which he answered.

"Yea, but not right now. If I do…" His eyes drifted to Soleil who, from what he saw, was close to reaching a maximum of embarrassment. "I don't think she'll last much longer."

Oddly enough, they continued their exploration, with Jaune and Ciel, purposely walking just a bit slower than the others. Coco and Yang walked ahead of the group, scouting for whatever shops gained their interests. Velvet and Ruby walked together, their conversation was focused on the games the young teen bought, along with whatever games the two were currently engrossed with at the moment. As for the two military students, they walked in silence, the blond stole glances of his friend whilst she did the same.

"You look good in that dress." He commented after a long silence. "But you don't seem too comfortable."

"I'm not used to wearing this kind of clothing." She muttered.

"You're from Atlas, right? Winter year-round?" Ciel nodded, she shifted a bit in her new dress while adjusting the ribbon on her head. "So they bought you some new cloths? That was nice of them."

"It was, but…I really wish they didn't make me try on so many. Especially that ling-" She cut herself right before revealing something that would've been the death of her. It didn't go unnoticed though, but noticing her expression, Jaune chose to no pressure her for details.

The rest of the day went rather calmly, aside from Xiao Long and Ciel seemingly at odds over a game in an arcade that tested physical strength. True enough, the two teens were unnaturally strong, and if it wasn't for them breaking the game, literally, they'd have continued with their contest. Although, it didn't help that Ciel spat a few insults towards the busty blonde, resulting in Yang flipping her dress and giving Jaune a rather generous eyeful of her undergarments. And like before, he commented on the color, and resulted with him being nearly pummeled to the ground. Of course, Ruby as well commented on the color, but remained untouched from Soleil's fury. Surprisingly there wasn't much damage, save for the machine they broke before their squabble escalated. Resulting in the two brawlers being banned from the arcade. Of course, it didn't seem to bother them.

As the day came to an end, each member respectively went their separate ways. Ciel took the transit to BC, Xiao Long and her sister took a bus to the north side of the city. The rest walked to their little complex, mild conversations thrown here and there, but relatively calm-like. Same as the day before; Coco and Velvet went to Adel's room, while Jaune walked to his room. After entering and locking the door behind him, he retrieved a book he bought. A Grimmiore Novel, while he wasn't exactly into games, he couldn't deny having a fascination with the lore, hence the reason he bought the book. Though, before getting a chance to indulge in his new purchase, his scroll rang. After glancing at the caller ID, he knew what conversation was waiting for him. So he placed his book down on the nightstand and answered.

"Xiao Long."

"I told you; call me Yang. I hate formalities." Came the response of his lieutenant. "Now then, about what you and Rubes talked about…"

"I know." Jaune answered, nothing else was needed for Yang to understand that her new boss was well aware of her baby sister's secret. Though, a few follow-up questions needed to be answered.

"…How did you find out?"

Taking a moment to collect his thoughts, Jaune recounted what occurred following up to finding Ruby in the men's bathroom. "Yesterday, when our meeting closed, I was going to the bathroom, but they were closed on the third floor."

"No surprise there." Yang responded bluntly.

"So I went to the second, the girl's was closed, and the guy's bathroom had a notice of faulty stalls."

"Again, not surprising."

"And when I walked in…well…I can only assume the first floor bathrooms were also closed." There was an eerie silence that followed before the former Major added in. "And today she wanted to talk about it, but after dodging the subject for a while, I told her she could tell me when she felt more comfortable. Which is going to take a bit, but I'll wait till she feels she can openly talk about it."

Again, there was absolute silence for a minute, that is, until a calm voice asked. "And what do you think?" it was obvious what the question was aimed at. Knowing that something he'll say will trigger the blonde brawler no matter how he words it; he gave her his honest opinion.

"Honestly, I could care less." There was a small pause before the blond boy continued. "What Ruby does with her life is her business, and if it makes her happy, then as her friend I'll support her. Honestly, even after I found out, it didn't change how I saw her. To me, she's still the same innocent kid that approached me on the roof. The same one that gushed over her games and got me interested in the Grimm Souls lore. While I'll know a bit more than perhaps she would've wanted me to, I'm not going to treat her any different than how I have been up till now. If I'm honest, I'm kind of worried I'll say something stupid or awkward along the way and make her feel uncomfortable."

Yang laughed softly at his response. "Don't worry about that, chief. You wouldn't be the first." For a brief moment, the two laughed a bit. Jaune sighed in relief, grateful that his new lieutenant wouldn't ground him into the pavement for his choice of words. "Before I forget; thanks, chief."

"…are you feeling ok? You don't have to force yourself, Xiao Long."

"Bite me." She shot back, playfully.

"Tempting as that sounds, I've gotta go. I'm not on kitchen detail but I'm worried over who is. See you on Monday, Yang." Jaune didn't wait for a response as he remembered who was placed on the cooking detail that night, and how it ended up the last time they attempted to make dinner.

 **-Xiao Long Residence-**

"Yea, see ya." Yang responded to an already ended call. She turned off her phone whilst turning to the person next to her. "Well, it looks like you do know how to pick 'em. He's a keeper, Rubes." She teased her younger sister whom was mildly blushing whilst smiling widely as small tears trickled down her cheeks. Her response was a simple nod, to which Yang placed her scroll aside and held her sister close. "So, not only is your big sis with you, but now the captain of the disciplinary division is on your side too. That's some level of support." Yang commented, earning a faint chuckle from her sister.

Just then, Ruby's scroll pinged. Slowly, she reached for it and answered. "It's from Jaune."

The message read. _'Your sister just thanked me for something; you might want to check up on her'_

Ruby giggled, while Yang expressed a mixture of a tired sigh and groan.

"Great, Coco really is rubbing off on him."

 **A/N: Wow, do I have a lot to unpack right now, so I'll try to be short (kinda, not really). For those who have an issue with how I'm depicting Ruby in this story, I'm** **ONLY** **genuinely sorry if I don't portray her situation realistically. As I've said before, and I will reiterate for however many times I need to: when I write a story, I will focus on trying to stay both in and out of clichés. Meaning I'd mix them in, but I also try not to overuse them. With that in mind, I also try to be a little realistic, while having some fun and mixing things up a bit. The** **ONLY** **time I'll ever 'cater' to anyone is in shipping (however crazy they may be) and in smut (to the best that I can currently write).**

 **In all honesty, I kind of expected the reaction the last chapter got and it did make me wonder if I was right to write Ruby's 'situation'...but then I thought to myself; fuck it: my story, my rules. If you don't like it; don't read. (Seriously, how hard is that?) And to clarify; I'm not mad, believe me it takes a whole lot more to set me off, but I just want to remind those who read my stories that I will always throw in a plot twist, or something unexpected in my story, be it to your liking or not. I write because I love to. Whether you like them or not, I feel happy just knowing my stories are being read.**

 **And with that, I will say this; was it necessary (Ruby's depiction in this story); yes, it plays into a story arc (hehe) I plan to write in later on, involving, yes, blackmail and a few threats. (...oh, spoilers by the way).**

 **Anyway, that's all I needed to say.**

 **But, enough of my ranting, I apologize for the late chapter; I try to have these up monthly. Although, my schedule and timing need work. As always, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if you didn't, thank you for reading anyway. Please be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter. Until next time!**


	9. Change of Hands

If one were to describe the current state of Beacon's Disciplinary captain, a few choice words were more than enough to do the job; annoyed, exhausted, and a little disturbed. The latter being due to the lengths that the parents of students would go when any sudden change to a school didn't comply with their interest, particularly since Beacon's Disciplinary Division was, at the moment, entirely comprised of 'red-listed' students. Which, for the life of him, Jaune couldn't understand why they were placed in such a category. Yes, they had broken a few rules, some more than once, but none so severe that they had to be red-listed. He had gotten letters directly addressed to him from angered parents, mostly mothers, who were opposed to his choices for his Division. This whole ordeal occurred the second week of school when the Disciplinary Division was introduced to the student body. While the students were genuinely confused as to why such a Division was needed, they were deeply shocked when the members were presented to the student body. And just like that, for the past two months, Jaune had received a colorful array of letters from angered mothers. Luckily for him, Ozpin supported his choice of members, even going so far as to promising the members what Jaune had used to bait them into joining; clearing a few juvenile records.

As for his exhaustion, there was quite a ton of paperwork he was given by a not so happy Goodwitch. The woman didn't openly complain, but the boy could see it in her glares that she was none too pleased with the way he chose to operate her creation. Still, for the most part, and surprisingly enough, there weren't serious problems regarding student interaction with the Disciplinary Division, save for a handful of cocky students who believed themselves to be better choices than the delinquents. For this, Jaune had assigned partners to each, an intimidating figure and a level-headed partner. And in regards to his annoyance; without a hint of hesitation, he would openly admit to Xiao Long being the cause of it. Well, partially. Aside from the blonde girl's constant attempt to get him to spend more time with Ruby, what bothered him greatly was an interaction she had with the heiress. Not verbally mind you, but, and again, surprisingly enough, through written letters.

The blond sat alone in his office, both letters written by said females in hand. Wondering how terrifying these two teens would be if they put this much energy into their work.

 _-To the Acting head of the Disciplinary Division,_

 _It has come to the attention of the student council over the concerns following your enlistment of, shall we say, 'unique' individuals into a program meant to keep the latter in line. I've had the time to read your records for Brigadier's, and be it this once, I will admit, I am genuinely impressed. For a student of your caliber, the accolades and accomplishments you've merited, to take low performing students and convert them into exemplary examples of what a student should be; these are traits that indeed in due for proper respect. However, I find it additionally, increasingly, disturbing that you'd select these particular students for your Division. These are not just low performing students, Mr. Arc, these are delinquents that have caused a great deal of problems in their time here in Beacon. Why these students are still enrolled here is beyond me. They've caused more than just a simple ruckus, and to place them in positions of power that give them free reign over students, I can say that I am not the only one to see the fault in your plan._

 _I urge you, as a fellow council member, in the interest of keeping the student body from being ever fearful of individuals they are meant to feel safe around; rethink your members and place students of proper decorum. A word of advice; start with a second in command that has the decency to keep their 'colorful' language to themselves. Acquiring a second in command that is less hot-tempered and scantily dressed would serve well for your reputation._

 _-Vice President, Weiss Schnee_

So said the first letter, and in all honesty, Jaune was genuinely surprised that the heiress was docile in this situation. Her initial reaction to the presentation of the Disciplinary Division was anything but pleasant. But where did Xiao Long fit into this? Well, as it happened, Yang discovered the letter first, read its contents, and voiced her own opinion. Which, for the most part, Jaune was glad that she did it through a letter, rather than in person. But even then, he couldn't exactly say she was as prim and proper as the heiress.

 _-To the Ice Queen,_

 _FUCK YOU_

 _-with love, Yang Xiao Long_

So simple, her letter was, and yet it was enough for the heiress to respond back, with her own colorful exchange. The blond didn't know what annoyed him most; the fact that the 'Vice President' responded to Yang's taunts, or the fact that the busty blonde actually replied, after the first letter, with grammar that even Jaune trouble understanding. Both these girls were at one another's throat, and to hopefully get these two off one another for a while, for the sake of the blond's health; he called them both for a truce.

Of course, while their little squabble was indeed a cause for concern, there was something else that Zedong brought to his attention earlier that day. In regards to the meeting he was to have with the heiress, the blond set up precautions to assure he held an upper hand should she pull any tricks.

Just as he placed the letters down, a soft knock brought his attention to the door. "Come in."

The door opened slowly, the heiress, albeit uncomfortable with being in the Disciplinary room, entered. She looked around, but only found one blond present. "And Xiao Long?" She asked, to which Jaune rose up and walked over to the observation room, knocking a few times before setting himself back down at his desk. The door opened to reveal and slightly annoyed brawler, she glared at the heiress before taking a seat beside her captain.

"Would you care to take a seat?" Jaune gestured to a chair opposite of Xiao Long. The heiress hesitated a bit before accepting.

The entire room was in an eerie silence, there was no show of hostility, but for some reason, it could be felt. Jaune was growing slightly impatient. He had brought these two to make peace and be done with it. From what he could see, it was as if they were elementary kids in trouble for fighting on the playground. Which, for whatever reason, wouldn't surprise the blond if that was how these two met. After another minute of silence, the former Brigadier began the peace talks.

"Alright you two..." Jaune began, gaining both their attentions. "While I don't see a problem with you two sending correspondence between one another, I have to put my foot down when the possibility of your hostilities showing in your line of work increase."

"She started it." Yang pouted whilst pointing to Weiss.

"You're the one who-" before getting a chance to throw her say in, Jaune slammed his palms down on his desk, startling the two girls.

"I don't care who started it, but rest assured; I'm ending it here and now." The blond stated, gaining only a glare from the heiress.

"And how exactly is our conversation any of your business?" The heiress asked, to which the blond held up the first letter she sent him.

"For starters, this all began with you insulting my Division members, and in particular; my lieutenant. You also responded to her reply, mind you. Voicing your opinion is one thing, but provoking my lieutenant, when you know how she is, isn't something one would consider the behavior of a council member." He scolded, leaving the heiress to lower her head, almost as if being scolded by an older sibling. Meanwhile, Yang sported a toothy grin, to which Jaune was quick to tear down. "And you, Xiao Long, you egged her on. I understand where your anger is coming from, but Weiss is right; you need to act like a council member now, you hold a seat after all."

The two teens kept their gazes down, neither exactly too keen on apologizing or admitting defeat just yet. Though, Weiss' teeth grit tightly at the reminder that she and Xiao Long were council members.

Jaune could tell these girls had too much pride to admit defeat, but even they had to realize there was a time and place for their squabbles. The blond sighed and crossed his arms. "I'm not pressuring you two to be friends, I just want make sure neither of you take your hostilities too far." His statement, while not receiving much of a reaction from Xiao Long, as she had an idea as to how her captain would scold her and what he'd say, Weiss in the other hand was skeptical of his handling of their situation.

"So you have no problem with us insulting each other, so long as it doesn't cause too much of a problem?" She asked, to which the blond nodded. "Isn't it your job to end our fighting?"

For this question, the boy shook his head. "I believe it best for the two of you to work out your differences between each other. Forcing you to act nice or be friends will amount to nothing; actually, it'll be counter-productive." He argued, retrieving a folder from within his desk and placing it on his desk. "Now then, can there be an agreement that the two of you will limit your squabbles to personal time, and not let it interfere with your work?"

"Wouldn't it be counter-productive for two members of a council to be at odds with one another? And even if we were to agree on anything, I doubt Xiao Long would put her pride aside." Weiss argued back, Yang showing increasing distaste for having the heiress in the same room as her. Though, before the busty blonde could respond.

"And what of you, how can we know we can trust you to keep your word as well? You can't expect us to take your word at face value, especially when you're going through the past records of my lieutenant?" Jaune shot back with a hint of venom in his tone. His accusation caught the heiress by surprise, though, as she was to deny his words, he opened the folder in front of him. Within was a list of sorts, detailing names that had accessed certain school data. Yang was somewhat shocked to see that the heiress' name popped up more than once. Her searches were of the Disciplinary Division's members, starting with the busty blonde. Both current and past student records were accessed, Jaune had lost his calm demeanor, currently he glared the young heiress down, as was Xiao Long after reading the reports. "Ms. Schnee, this feels like persecution, when for the past two months of the school year, save for a few angered mothers and students with little to no basis for their arguments, my division has had no legitimate complaint filed against any member or the whole of my team. Nor has there been any action that would've given reason to put my Division into question." As Jaune finished his comment, the doors to the Disciplinary office opened, every member walked in without a care in the world. Their attentions, however, were focused on their work; half began reviewing filed reports, others were changing into separate uniforms they used for patrolling the school grounds. "But I'd be remiss in my duty to remind you that, as of last month, access to these files have been restricted to school staff due to growing concerns over misuse and/or tampering of student records. These files are federal property, thus, access without proper authorization is an immediate crime; a federal crime, Ms. Schnee." A massive chill ran down the heiress' back, while also the increasing fear of what her rivalry had led her to do. Her heart dropped as the words he spoke echoed in her mind. Her future, in that instance, seemingly crumbled before her eyes. For even she knew severity of simply being accused of a federal crime, and there was no way her family's influence would save her from this. Her fists tightened as she could picture what would become of her when he father caught wind of her actions, and under what circumstances they were conducted. The members around all seemingly froze, their eyes all focused on their captain who oh-so-casually was driving fear into the Schnee. Even Yang felt a bit of sympathy towards the heiress, very little, however. That was, until a somewhat unsettling smile spread across her captain's lips. "Of course, by definition, school staff includes; senior teacher staff and the student council. The Disciplinary Division is charged with monitoring who has access to the data archives. I merely felt the need to remind you since you've been accessing these records and, from what I see, you haven't been informed of this change. Which is really disturbing. Arslan." He called to the girl who was adjusting the Disciplinary badge on her chest.

"Yea."

"Inform the rest of the student council of the sudden change, just in case they haven't been told yet." Arslan's response was a half-hearted salute. While the heiress wanted to ask why the Disciplinary members had changed so casually in front of one another, the more pressing matter at the moment, in her opinion, was the prospect of being scared to her core by the Disciplinary captain. Maybe that wasn't his intention, but the heiress was still trembling, though she wouldn't openly admit it. But then, why would the school make a sudden decision and not inform the council? Was there distrust in the council? All of these questions bugged the heiress until the blond caught her attention. "With that in mind, Ms. Schnee, I'm asking you to cease your harassment of my division."

"I'm not harassing, my intentions are to maintain Beacon's credibility, and your division members are causing people to question whether our school has lost its mind." Weiss shot back, her vigor having suddenly resurfaced.

"I've heard enough arguments from angered mothers over this, need I remind you that Ozpin supports me decision? Besides, if you haven't noticed, most of the fights teachers would have to intervene in on a daily basis have settled down, drastically. And to this day, my members have kept true to the mandate; upholding the school code, and keeping order amongst the students. You can't deny that an exemplary job is being done so far."

"That's still no excuse to put these delinquents above me!" The heiress blurted out. She had recoiled almost instantly, but the words had already made their ripple effects. May, who was monitoring the internet activity in the student library, mildly glared at the heiress branding the division as delinquents. Her fist clenched, though, she was subtle with her emotions. The other members were somewhat similar, save for Sage and Yang, neither were subtle with how pissed they were that the ice queen was targeting them simply because she felt them beneath her. Jaune, on the other hand, showed no change in his facial expression. His emotions, although, were another story.

"I see, so the truth comes to light then?" He muttered as he leaned forward, his eyes focused solely on the heiress, unnerving her to a great degree. "Then I suppose, with that little revelation; it's clear that a truce isn't within reach any time soon. You may leave." That last bit felt more like an order than anything else, but with the way she just conducted herself, Weiss felt like she had no stand to argue with the blond. Swallowing her pride, she rose up, and silently walked towards the door. As she was to open the door, a few choice words were thrown her way. "I met your father once..." Weiss froze, her palm gripping the door knob. She dared not look back. Just hearing the mentioning of her father made her want to leave ever so hastily. She knew what he'd say, and she had no intention of hearing him speak those words. "Between you and him..." she had turned the knob and was ready to walk away. "…I see no resemblance." Again, she froze. Rather, she was surprised, considering she usually got an opposite response. "Personality wise. Though, in terms of appearance...well, I can't really make an argument there. But if I may, might I recommend the phrase; walk a mile in their shoes?"

Weiss, rather than turn and respond, stood frozen by the door for a moment before eventually leaving. The silence lingered for a while before Sage spoke up. "Didn't see that coming. Guess that truce is out of the question then?"

The members nodded as Jaune focused his attention back to the field on his desk. "Can't say for certain, but then, the unexpected might be in our favor." He responded, sifting through the paperwork Goodwitch dropped on him. He had finished more than half of it, thanks in large part to Zedong who usually stayed in the office to help out. Arslan and she were almost always in the Disciplinary HQ, either getting work done, or often in May's case; in need of a quiet place to relax. "With that mind. Yang." The brawler almost flinched at the call of her name. Jaune's eye's narrowed as they fixed themselves on the busty blonde. All the while the other members averted their gazes.

"Y-yea, boss?"

"I expect you to be on your best behavior from here on out. Otherwise…" As his voice trailed off, neither Yang, nor the other members dared ask him what he was going to say, lest they shown exactly what punishment their boss had in store for them for stepping out of line. "By the way, where are Bolin and Nadir?" Jaune asked of the new members he recruited the month prior.

"Nadir is picking up the mail for the division, and I think Nadir went to pick up our lunches." Reese answered while buttoning her blazer. The patrol uniform, surprisingly, was similar to the regular uniform, but completely coated in black with only a single red stripe on the right shoulder. At some point, Sage had made a joke about wearing berets to complete the ensemble. His little joke was short lived as a black beret was indeed included in with their uniforms. In a rather comical way, Yatsuhashi's uniform had to be custom made since his size was...unique, to say the least.

The doors opened, with two males waking in with widened smiles. "Yo! Lunch is here. And boss..." the pinquette walked over to his captain.

"More mom mail?" Jaune asked, to which the response was a small box of envelopes placed firmly in front of him. "Of course." The pink-haired teen gave his captain a sympathetic smile before walking over to Bolin. The two took out the meals inside and passed them to their fellow members, all the while Xiao Long shifted quietly in her seat.

"They just won't let this go, will they?" Yang mumbled, crossing her arms while remembering having to be stationed at the school's entrance a couple of times and receiving dirty looks from parents. She never snapped, no matter the amount of 'subtle' insults the older folk threw her way. Which, for the most part, was beneficial for the Disciplinary Division considering the excuse most used to get them disbanded was the idea that the members were short-tempered. Of course, Xiao Long couldn't speak for most of them, Nadir and Sage were a bit more hot-headed, but each proved to control their tempers as time passed. Reese was another short-fuse, though she rarely blew up in anyone's face, thankfully.

"They're looking out for the safety of their children, though, why they won't do the same with Winchester shows a bit more of their character, and how they view themselves in the social stance." Jaune responded, earning the full attention of those in the room. He didn't need to go into full detail; they knew what he was referring to all too well. "Doesn't matter anyway, none of their little 'protests' have made the slightest difference. But..." the tension in the room thickened as the members somewhat jumped at the sight of their captain with an almost murderous glare. "All of these repetitive, baseless, annoying letters are going to be the end of me." He muttered.

As Sage was the first to recover from the blond's death stare, an upcoming event came to mind. "Question; aren't the third years using the pools next week, after the dance?" The teen asked while biting into his burger.

"I believe so; classes B and D are sharing morning session, A and C are sharing Afternoon session." Yatsuhashi answered, though, he soon focused his attention back on his meal. As Jaune reviewed another set of letters the door was suddenly slammed open. Though, there weren't any reactions as they all had grown accustomed to this, or rather, the antics of the newcomer.

"Good morning~" the redhead greeted, to which the response was a calm.

"Morning Nora." The division members greeted the energetic teen.

"Good timing, listen up..." Jaune spoke up, gaining the attention of the small group. "Sage and Yang are on watch duty for the morning pool sessions. Nora and Yatsuhashi are in charge of the afternoon watch. You four will be on watch during the third and first year pool sessions." The tall teen nodded, whilst the mentioned redhead and blonde smirked widely.

"What do we need the watches for?" Nadir asked whilst biting into a sandwich. "Are we expecting peepers?"

"I hope not, but even if there aren't, I'd rather be safe than sorry. The rest of you will need to attend the sessions." Jaune sorted through a few papers before retrieving a flyer and sliding it towards the center of the table where his team huddled around. All save for one, who was currently stirring nervously in their seat. "Also, during the dance next week, we'll be taking turns with patrol duty. It's not optional, but that doesn't mean you can't have a bit of fun during the dance." The blond captain then narrowed his view towards the busty blonde sitting next to him. "Of course, nothing too extreme that will lead to the heiress, Goodwitch, and more angry mothers coming down on me. Right, Yang?" His voice nearly sounded like a growl, though it sent a clear message across as the busty blonde nodded nervously. "Good, then if there's no questions; we have work to do. Let's get to it." The blond captain set aside the letters and resumed his paperwork. Those on patrol quickly left after eating their lunch, leaving only Jaune and May to sift through the papers, and Sage, with his morning patrol having been completed, decided to remain within the division's HQ for the fact that it had a working AC. Although, he chuckled lightly to himself as his 'partner' had walked off believed she had afternoon patrol. It wouldn't take long for her to realize, though he enjoyed the fact that he now had a bit of teasing material to use on her.

It was never made entirely clear why Yang was somewhat afraid of the blond, but none of the members found it in them to ask, simply put it that they didn't feel like it was their business to know. Therein was a shared truth Jaune greatly appreciated; save for Yang, no other Disciplinary member was nosy or too curious. Another part of his work was when it was nice and quiet like these days.

For the most part, May and Jaune worked in almost absolute silence, with the occasional small talk here and there. Of the entire division the blond had assembled, he knew more, personally, about Zedong, Xiao Long, and Ayana. Of course, the latter was something that grew out of a misunderstanding, albeit comical, but one that was thankfully cleared up by each respected parties. Jaune expected this day to pass like any other; May and him would finish a few files and turn in for the day. A faint knock on the door proved otherwise. While initially confused as to who was at their door during lunch, the blond answered. As soon as he opened the door, he was greeted by a pair of silver eyes.

"Morning Jaune." Ruby chirped, happily greeting her friend.

"Morning, Ruby." He greeted back with a faint grin. This wasn't the first time she had visited him at the Division's HQ, but it was the first time she came alone, and when Yang wasn't there. "Just you today?" He asked, receiving a faint pout from the young prodigy.

"What, I'm not good enough?" she asked with her pout somewhat falling apart as the two shared a small moment of laughter at her antics. After composing themselves, Ruby walked into the room, only to be greeted by the expressionless stare from one of the division's quietest members, and the green-haired teen sitting quietly beside her, glancing towards the young girl, giving her a simple wave, then turning back to the window. As Ruby waved back, she turned to Jaune with a widened grin. "Actually, Velvet had to run an errand for Professor Oobleck, and Coco is with her. They told me to go on ahead; they'll be here in a bit."

"I see, well, it should take your sister a bit to realize her patrol duty is over, so make yourself comfortable." Jaune gestured to his seat while he pulled up a chair and began sifting through the mounts of paperwork. But if he thought he'd get any work done at the moment, he clearly wasn't prepared.

"Hey, Ruby, you going to the dance next week, or did your sister 'talk' with all your options already?" Ayana asked, seemingly not caring whether she answered or not, but rather just trying to make conversation to pass the time. Though, what he didn't expect was for her to answer, more so with the finishing touch.

"W-well, I was asked, and Yang promised she would only have a word with them." she threw in almost instantly.

"Don't count on it." The three present members responded to her claim, to which her shoulders slumped at the reality of it.

"I know. But I did have someone in mind." She added, with her smile returning almost as quickly.

"And who might that be?" by now, Zedong was slightly invested, though not as much as Ayana since they both knew how Xiao Long would react when she found out her sister had someone in mind to go to the dance with. The common thought was that Yang would seek out this individual and either set some ground rules, or she'd give them a stern talking to. Regardless, the brawler would watch over her baby sister like a hawk should the teen have any date to the dance.

Ruby's response was to glance over to the blond reviewing files at his desk. Both Sage and May glanced to one another and shared a common thought.

"Yangs' gonna kill him."

"Yangs' gonna sit this one down."

Or perhaps not, as it seems the two had different opinions over how this would play out.

"The hell? You really think Yang isn't gonna lay hands on the chief if he goes to the dance with Ruby?" Sage asked, recollecting previous memories of Xiao Long dealing with guys who tried asking her sister out in the past.

"There's no way she'd do anything. Besides, it's not like the boss is gonna do anything to her…he doesn't seem the type to be interested in that kind of stuff." May argued.

"…actually, yea, I can see that." The green-haired boy agreed.

"You two realize I can hear you, right?" Both stiffened, turning ever so slowly to meet the ice cold stare of their division captain. Each felt an eerie chill run up their spine as they recoiled almost instantly. Both quickly averted their gazes, even Ruby felt uncomfortable having to look at Jaune when he was mildly annoyed. As it turned out, while Yang and Sage where experts in physical intimidation, Jaune kept his wits on psychological intimidation, as he had done multiple times before. Using mere words to assure his dominance, and showing respect towards his members solidified his role as their captain. Of course, there were moments when even he knew how to take a joke; this was not one of those moments.

While the two kept their eyes away, the blond softened his gaze and turned to Ruby. "So, who is it you're interested in going to the dance with?" A faint grin had spread across his lips.

"Are you going to tell Yang?" Ruby asked, rightfully worried her sister would somehow intervene or scare away her date.

"If there's something you don't want to tell her, I won't say a thing. That also goes for the two of you, understand?" his glare had returned, with a rather harsher aura to go with it. with little hesitation, Sage and May saluted and yelled out 'aye sir', earning a giggle from Ruby and tired sigh from the blond. "Now then, care to fill us in?"

The young teen appeared to be fumbling with her words as she twiddled her thumbs nervously, keeping her eyes elsewhere but on the Disciplinary Captain. In a way, it was almost sickly sweet, though the two onlookers had wondered if this had been done before; a young lass asking a former military to a dance. It wasn't until a few seconds that she finally pieced together what she had wanted to say. Although, as she was to finally speak her mind, the door to the HQ opened, causing the young teen to yelp ever so lightly, whilst mildly jumping in place. Both Sage and May were startled, though a bit salty at the fact that someone had interrupted this little scenario. But, what came through the door only brought three confused expressions, and an overly joyous teen.

"Oi, is there a Jaune here? Oz said I could find him here." A gruff, almost slurring voice came from the raven-haired man.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby almost cheered as she threw herself at her uncle, had he not been prepared, the two would've tumbled down. The young girl had clung to his side, gripping him tightly whilst smiling widely. Before she could ask anything, the blond captain rose up.

"Can I help you?" He asked, his nose twitching at the strong smell of whiskey coming from the man. Even May and Sage couldn't withstand the stench.

Qrow retrieved a flask from…one of his pockets, downed some of the contents, and faced the blond. "Nice to meet ya kid. Sorry to spring this up so suddenly, but as of now, Goodwitch is no longer the Disciplinary Division's supervisor. From here on out, your Division answers to me."

 **Hey everyone, now before anything else, I'd like to apologize for the long wait, I planned to have this out in mid-August, but I've been caught up with a lot of things recently. Apart from a small job, a relationship, and school, my life has been pretty hectic. Hell, I didn't think I'd be able handle all of this and maintaining my stories. But, I'm still here, my imagination is as restless as ever, and I am working on these stories as fast as I can, but I will, and as I will always attempt to do, keep to quality over quantity. I'm hoping to keep the updates within 2-4 weeks of each other, but I won't make any promises I can't keep.**

 **Anyway, enough of this author's problems, let's go back to fanfiction. Aside from this story, I've written others that I almost finished, but left behind simply because the drive had slowed, or stopped all together. I do plan to do a revamp of the Shared Past Separate Future story, updating it with what we know with RWBY now, mixing some elements I had from the previous story, and dedicating more time to the intended couple of the story. I've got a lot on my plate; I'll also be making little one-shots here and there so be sure to expect more stories from me. AND, more chapters for this story as well. I hope this chapter hasn't disappointed, especially after the long wait.**

 **Thank you all for listening to my rant. Stay tuned for the next piece. Ciao!**


	10. A friendly drink

By the end of the school day, a rather large collection of rumors passed within the halls of Beacon, students gossiping over the new supervisor of the Disciplinary Division to the failed truce between the heiress and the brawler. Throughout most of the day, Jaune and Yang were busy with the council, particularly discussing the recent change in policy over who had access to student records. While the two blondes kept mostly to themselves, the heiress, surprisingly, spoke very little throughout the meeting, leaving only the council president to take up most of the discussion. The red haired teen showed great worry over this sudden change, being left completely in the dark for about a month. Luckily, only senior staff and the student council retained access to the archives, though, not being informed was what had the teen on edge. The other members, while also worried, said very little as well, answering only when they felt compelled to.

"I just don't understand why this is happening. Why is Ozpin doing this?" Nikos mumbled to herself, pacing, oddly, calmly in the middle of the room. "First he creates a new staff division of students above the council, and next he limits access to school files without informing us."

Jaune leaned over to Yang and whispered as low as he could. "If you speak; tread lightly, we don't need any more enemies." The brawler nodded, though she doubted she'd speak at the moment. Pyrrha was commonly viewed as the 'invincible girl'; never broken, disturbed, or bothered. But now, she seemed on edge. Surprisingly, she didn't appear to be angered by the fact that the Disciplinary Division had knowledge of this info. At least, not that she would show it.

"Maybe..." all eyes turned to the council member with a single pink strand among a sea of ebony. "...we weren't informed because Ozpin isn't confident we're doing our job." Weiss appeared as if she were going to argue, though, something caught her tongue as she actually thought back on their situation. The only one who didn't show any shock or worry for the teen's words were the two blonde's sitting quietly across from him.

"That could be..." All eyes were now on the blond captain, "but, the sudden creation of my division could be in response to these..." Jaune gestured to his lieutenant, who reached within a folder and slid its contents to Pyrrha. The redhead wasted no time sifting through the papers, as was Weiss who was sitting beside her. What they found in abundance were letters and statements by the students regarding their distrust and open hatred towards the council. "...those are just from this month." Jaune informed, earning a look of horror from the president and her vice. "The most common complaint about the council is, quite simply; they abuse their power."

"The names are inked over." Weiss interjected.

"Of course, we promised anonymity." Jaune commented, only to have the heiress shoot back at him with a distasteful expression.

"So then how do we know these are real?" She refused to believe these complaints, though, something in the back of her head felt like she knew she was fighting a truth.

"You don't have to believe me, but the rumors that pass the student body are almost the same; students are none too pleased with the way the council handles itself. Particularly the clubs and classes that were either cut or shut down last year." Jaune redirected his gaze to Pyrrha, his expression was intimidating, almost as if demanding and daring her to justify her actions on this subject. Although, it was Weiss again who answered for the redhead.

"The school needed to save money, the clubs that were shut down were nothing more than places were students gathered and did relatively nothing productive. Ghost-seeking club, society of the dark arts club, ninja admiration club..." the heiress listed off, giving Jaune sense that a majority of these clubs were indeed; stupid. Though, there still remained the classes.

"And the cut of extracurricular classes?"

"Few students signed on to these classes, the cost to keep them running with the small number of attendants would've been a further waste. And these aren't mandatory classes, so there wasn't a problem with cutting them." Weiss argued, her voice had settled down, mostly after having to keep eye contact with the blond captain. The young heiress had just realized how the boy was able to keep an iron grip on his division; the fear he seemed to so easily instill in anyone who met his glare. It unsettled her, greatly.

"So then, the students who complained are mostly just ones who took the classes for granted, and created ridiculous clubs that were a drain on the school's funds? And due to the cuts, the student council is now being seen as blue bloods abusing their power? Am I getting that right?" Now, it was Yang who spoke up, gaining a rare nod from the young Schnee. For a moment, Xiao Long appeared to be lost in thought before snapping her fingers and raising herself from her seat. "Alright then, let's kill two birds with one stone then; we bring back the extracurricular classes and make them mandatory, each student has to take at least two before they graduate, minus the current seniors and juniors. And as for the clubs, why don't we bring them back, so long as they stay within the school's guidelines, and we have them fund their own activities out of their own pockets. One way we could help them start off on a high note is to have a school festival and have the clubs produce something to showcase for the event." For a moment, the entire room was silent, save for the pink-haired boy who appeared to mumble something quietly to himself before speaking aloud.

"An interesting idea, but when do you propose we have this event?" He asked, receiving a questionable gaze from his president.

"Umm...the week before winter break?" She suggested. "It would give the clubs almost two months to plan the events, and the testing period is the week before, so the students shouldn't be too stressed out during the celebration."

"And..." To add on to the many surprises of the day, Weiss appeared as she were going to agree with the brawler, though, she appeared unwilling to admit; she was excited over the prospect of a school festival. "The festival can be a week-long event, opened to the public as well."

"Whatever the clubs make during the festival will be their funds." Ren added, earning a nod from the other members, save for Pyrrha.

"Just imagine; the games, the music..." Gayl commented, "The food." A slimmer of saliva trickled as she pictured the plethora of cuisine the students would concoct for the festivities.

"And hey, maybe we could have an end of the school year festival if this one is a hit." Flynt added. "We'd possibly generate a pretty good amount of revenue, and the student morale would improve."

"But then..." Jaune spoke up, gaining the attention of his fellow council members. "Before you start planning future festivals, it'd be wise to gain permission from Ozpin. And before we can even consider asking him, we'd need to prepare accordingly. If this school festival is truly something you'd all be interested in fully committing to, then by all means, you have my vote. But first, it would be wise to plan accordingly; we can't just declare a festival and go on a whim. First and foremost; how are we going to fund this event?" Almost immediately, the excitement died down, though, the blond did raise a valid point. "Perhaps, we can finish discussing the issue with the sudden change in policy and student view of the council, later we discuss the clubs and extracurricular classes, and lastly we can move on to planning the festival." The members all glanced at one another before turning to their president. The redhead had been left out of most of the conversation, though, at this moment they were waiting on her take on the matter.

"A festival sounds fun, but as Mr. Arc pointed out, we should finish our initial topic, and in our next meeting, we can plan out in greater detail on how we can make the festival a reality." She pointed out, receiving a unanimous nod of agreement from her fellow members. While not openly showing, the student president didn't seem too interested in this festival, but rather, the reports taken by the Disciplinary members.

Following the end of the council meeting, Jaune and Yang walked towards their Division HQ, both relatively silent. Jaune had spoken little during the meeting, though; the same couldn't be said for Xiao Long, who for the most part, came up with a variety of ideas to raise the approval rating of the council. A few times, Jaune showed genuine shock, and a trace of pride in a faint smirk on his lips when Yang spoke. Something the brawler took quick notice of, and felt a tinge of pride as well. Both for their own reasons, but a relatively shared sentiment.

"I have to say..." the blond captain spoke calmly, but somehow it still managed to cause the brawler to faintly flinch. Again, how Jaune was able to instill a level of fear that was enough to intimidate Xiao Long was a mystery even the teachers had, on occasion, asked for an answer to. Of course, none but the Disciplinary Division knew how the blond captain went about this, but it did leave people with a different viewpoint of the young captain; from first glance, he appeared relatively harmless. But given time spent around him, that notion quickly changed. "...I'm a bit disappointed the main topic we were supposed to discuss was almost instantly pushed aside, but I suppose we can deal with that later." As they reached the door to their room, the blond turned to his lieutenant, with a faint smile. "You handled yourself pretty good back there." The brawler flashed a rather large smirk.

"What? Did you think I was gonna pick a fight with the ice queen?" She asked.

"Yes." Jaune answered bluntly "and I also thought you'd be bored out of your mind." The brawler chuckled lightly as the two entered the room, greeted a few of their fellow members; Sage, May, and Arslan sitting around a sleeping Ruby and their clearly passed out supervisor. The blond captain didn't show any reaction to seeing his division's supervisor passed out drunk, the man took a swig of his flask every so often. As for Ruby, she must've been waiting for her big sis.

As the door was about to close, a hand from the hallway suddenly caught hold of the door, causing all eyes to focus on the door. Soon, after the owner of the hand made their presence known, the members of the Disciplinary Division simultaneously glared at the sight of the white-haired heiress. All except Jaune. The young Schnee walked in with her head tilted low, her eyes seemingly glued to the ground.

"Ms. Schnee, to what do we owe this visit?" The blond captain asked in a neutral tone.

Avoiding faint glares from the surrounding members, Weiss kept her head low, though, she turned her body towards the blonde lieutenant. She approached Yang, cautiously, as she retrieved a paper from a folder in her hand and offered it to the brawler. Hesitantly, Xiao Long took the piece of parchment and analyzed it.

"Since you're the one who came up with the idea, Lie Ren proposed that you...lead preparations for the event. And the president agreed to place you in charge." Weiss finished it somewhat bitterly, considering she was probably the one most excited about this, she had hoped to be the one to coordinate the event.

"Something wrong, princess?" Yang cooed, letting the whole room know that she in for a fight. "You don't seem too happy."

 _'I can never have a day's peace.'_ The blond captain groaned internally as he sat down with Sage and intended to watch this whole thing unfold.

"Clearly, someone more qualified should've been assigned to this." Weiss replied, the bitterness in her tone was all but subtle at this point.

"And I assume that someone is you?"

"Better than leaving it at the hands of you." The heiress shot back, the atmosphere in the room was shifting drastically, the blond captain silently signaling his fellow members to prepare to break a fight should this argument result to such a degree. The three nodded, and kept themselves in a position to leap into action should they need to.

"I could say the same thing; if we leave it to you, the whole festival will be uptight, too regulated, and boring. Kinda like you." Yang shot back, to which the heiress was now fuming.

"And if we left it to you, it would be nothing but disorder, property damages, and complete loss of the school's credibility!" Weiss' tone rose, as did apparently her head. The two were now glaring one another, eye to eye. Those watching felt intimidated by the aura emitting from these two.

"There they go again; like children. Where they always like this?" Jaune asked Sage, clearly not caring whether the two could hear him. Before Ayana could answer, the two standing teens continued their argument rather louder than before.

"Is that all you care about; credibility? Wait, look who I'm asking. Of course that's all you'd ever care about. Would it kill you to lighten up?" Almost as quickly as Yang asked that, the heiress seemed to flinch, albeit very subtle. The young heiress, rather than respond, cringed ever so slightly, the girls beside the green haired teen laughed softly, and Sage chuckling.

"Something funny?" Jaune asked his subordinates, to which Arslan placed an arm on her captain's shoulder.

"It's kind of an inside joke." She commented, remembering the little incident clearly. Weiss cringed; Xiao Long scratched the back of her head whilst whistling a little tune.

The blond arched an eyebrow before shrugging at the whole matter, a wash of relief that this didn't escalate was all that occupied the captain's mind at the moment. "Whatever. I'm headed home." Jaune grabbed his coat, but was almost instantly pulled towards Yang who hand a rather widened grin on her face.

"Hey boss, you up for a drink tonight?" Xiao Long asked, to which her fellow blonde slightly recoiled and was trying to release himself from her grip. Albeit, failing to so much as loosen her hold.

"As long as you take it easy this time, Yang. Last thing I need is an earful from Junior. Again." Jaune reminded, earning barely muffled laughter from his fellow members, and a slight blush from the brawler. Weiss on the other hand was staring with widened eyes at her classmates, had they really just admitted to drinking alcohol, and if so why were they so casual about it? She had half a mind to report this; perhaps this would assist with getting rid of this Division.

Before getting a chance to make headway to Ozpin's office, the heiress was stopped when she heard the blond captain call out to her; she flinched almost just at the sound of his voice. "Ms. Schnee, care to join us?" slowly, she turned her head to see the other members look at her rather warily, whilst Jaune's face remained neutral. It was then that an idea sparked in the young heiress; simply telling the headmaster wouldn't amount to much without solid evidence, and here these teens were inviting her.

Obviously, she'd never stoop to their level, although, this would give her the perfect opportunity to take some compromising photos. Hesitantly, she accepted, though she could tell the other members of the Disciplinary Division were none too pleased with her coming along. Of course, what bothered her, besides the fact that she'd be heading to some pub or club with her classmates, they somehow found it fit to bring along the brawler's younger sibling, of course, of greater annoyance was the fact that joining them as well was their newly appointed supervisor. Fair enough, she had heard the name Branwen before, her sister informed her of what kind of a man he was, but to allow his students to actually drink, the heiress would have a field day once she reported this. Though, there remained the question, why did they invite her? Did they hope to sway her?

Of course, once at the apparent club, much to the heiress' surprise, or somewhat lack thereof; Jaune knew the owner and seemed to be familiar with a few employees. The twin led the small group to an area reminiscent to a restaurant setting, their table being a U-shaped couch. Although, given the situation, the only ones sitting at the table were a passed out supervisor, May Zedong, and Xiao Long's younger sister. Shortly after arriving, Xiao Long broke off with a few of the members to the dance floor, leaving Arc and the heiress sitting at the bar, the blond drinking quietly, whilst Weiss watched the members of the Disciplinary Division enjoy themselves. She had hoped to take a picture of them all drinking, though, at the moment, only their captain had gotten himself a beverage. The music wasn't too deafening, but the blasting speakers made it hard for anyone to hold a conversation. Although, that only seemed to apply for those on the dance floor, as from the bar Weiss could hear the music, but it wasn't loud enough to mute out conversation. At the moment, the young heiress was lost in her thought, wondering why it was that her classmates were allowed in this place, and why it was that their captain had connections with the owner. She felt her father's voice cloud her thoughts, urging her that this was how the Kingdom of Vale's lower class operated; no sense of decency and a system that made a mockery of morality. She looked around noticed other teens her age socializing and partying about. And then a particular sight caught her eye, taking a seat with at their table, and bringing an overwhelmingly wide smile to Rose's face; Coco Adel. The girl with who her best friend has had trouble with since her Freshman year, here, partaking in activities that could very well be used in Nikos' favor. The icing on the cake; one of the twins Arc interacted with earlier brought the girl a drink, Weiss gleefully took out her scroll, angling herself as to assuring she'd capture the brown-haired girl.

"So…" Her head snapped to the blond captain's direction, almost quickly enough to whip his face with her side-tail. "You're not drinking, talking, eating…if you didn't want to come; you could've easily rejected my offer. No one was forcing you." The heiress didn't respond, rather, she couldn't. While Arc wasn't looking at her, she could feel a sense of danger just by sitting beside him. Something in the back of her conscious was urging her to run, but, she stayed. Jaune fiddled with his drink, staring blankly at the ice swimming within the glass. "Or is it…" The heiress froze as she could feel his eyes turn to face her directly; a tingling chill crawled up her spine as quickly avoided eye contact. "You're just not a drinker?"

"Y-yea, that's it." Weiss responded, keeping her eyes from making contact.

"I see." Jaune mumbled as his eyes glanced to Coco, then back to Weiss. His expression remained neutral. "Granted, I doubt either of us have any reason to drink consistently, but theres nothing wrong with an occasional drink. Though, I suppose no one really becomes a drinker unless they have something they really need to forget." He commented, taking another sip of his drink while ignoring the curious glance the heiress threw his way. His little statement left her with a barrage of questions. "But, then again, I guess that was just something I told myself to justify my mother's drinking." For a moment, Weiss remained frozen in place, her mind swimming with the sudden revelation. But, she was also confused as to why he would tell her something so personal. From what she heard, the blond was extremely secretive, caring little for sharing any part of his personal life. Though, it seemed like the rumors weren't exactly on point. "Aside from that, whatever photos you're thinking of taking, save your breath, they won't amount to anything." The blond's face remained neutral, though; the heiress beside him was sweating bullets. Had truly been that obvious? Granted, she wasn't used to doing something like this, but to have been discovered when the person who caught her wasn't even paying attention. It was remarkably embarrassing.

"So, what are you going to do to keep my silence? Bribe me, blackmail me? I'll have you know, a Schnee never backs down when pushed against the wall." Weiss remarked while placing her scroll back in her bag.

"While I'm sure you do, I'd like to know; what exactly are we supposed to keep you silent about, nothing illegal has been done…so far." Jaune's response was nothing less than agitating for the white-haired teen. Nothing illegal? Did he really not have a clue, or was he playing her? She wanted to snap, but remained calm due to where they currently stood. Then again, she was slightly put off by his last remark; so far? Was he planning something? Before being able to ponder this thought further, a glass was placed beside in front of her. The young teen glanced at alcohol in front of her, confused as she hadn't ordered anything. The burgundy color was similar to an Atlesian brand of wine, though the strong smell said otherwise.

"Meridian Whiskey." Arc stated before taking another sip of his beverage. "Not exactly a fan favorite in Atlas, but it's well known here and in Vacuo. Go ahead, it's on me. After all, we're well within the age to drink." The white-haired teen shot a confused look towards the blond before he clarified. "You do realize the legal drinking age in Vale is 17, right?" the Heiress' eyes had widened, her ears heard perfectly, but her mind refused to accept what she had just heard. "I suppose that's pretty hard to believe, coming from Atlas. The drinking age there is what? 20?"

"22." Weiss corrected.

"Yea, that sounds about right." Jaune mumbled, glancing back to his glass. "It's quite a big difference in age, but I suppose it has to do with culture."

"And you find nothing wrong with that?" The heiress asked, earning a mild grin from the blond captain.

"Should I?" The look on the heiress' expression shifted, her emotions battling over whether to snap or continue holding their 'conversation'. Getting an idea of what was troubling her; Jaune placed his glass down and turned to face the heiress. "You're not in Atlas; the laws for our two Kingdoms are vastly different. I'm surprised to have to be explaining this to you. Oh, and I'd advise you to be well informed before deciding to act, particularly on impulse. I shouldn't have to tell you that. Telling you this almost feels like I'm speaking with Yang." In that moment, if only for a second, the blond captain felt a sliver of fear crawl up his spine. He cleared his throat before continuing. "With that in mind, whatever photos you took, I'd appreciate you delete them. Particularly since you'll be unable to make use of any of them." The heiress flinched, hesitantly; she reached into her bag and retrieved her scroll. She handed the device to the blond; he took the scroll and proceeded to delete the few she had taken. As he was finishing erasing the last photo she had taken, an image fell into view, one that had given the blond, for some strange reason, an aching headache. He passed the scroll back to the heiress after shutting off the screen.

As the two now sat in silence, an awkward tension began to grow. Both Jaune and Weiss kept to themselves for a few minutes before the young heiress reached for her drink and staring aimlessly at the liquor inside. She glanced ever so slightly towards the boy next to her, his attention was focused…nowhere, to be exact. He took small sips and kept his eyes forward, his mind seemingly focused elsewhere at the moment. It was almost, like he was used to this, and it bothered her. It bothered her to see him drink so easily, particularly in regards to his earlier statement. The blond noticed her uneasy gaze and turned ever so slightly to face her. "Something on your mind?"

"I'm just not used to seeing people my age drink, especially in a place like this." Weiss gestured to the club.

"I'm surprised you didn't realize sooner, given that you've been living in Vale for a while."

Weiss stayed silent for a moment, both her palms grasped her glass. "I didn't know because I assumed the drinking age would be, at the very least, higher than 20. I don't tend to get out a lot, and none of the people I associate with would never be caught in a place like this. Given its location, I assumed this place would be filled with nothing but…unsavory types. No offense."

"I honestly couldn't care." He dismissed. "I prefer honesty."

"So I hear." Weiss responded. "If that's so, then answer me this; why'd you invite me?"

Once the bartender refilled the teen's drink, he took a rather large gulp before turning his attention back to the heiress. "Same reason I bought you a drink; I was hoping we'd be able to start off on a better foot."

"What's the angel?"  
"I'd rather not make my division an enemy of the student council, and considering the fact that Nikos isn't too pleased with my division, I had hoped you and I could come to an understanding." Jaune took another sip, though; he shifted his body to face the heiress fully. "I don't want you or your fellow members as my enemies, but like you, Schnee, my family's creed is something I too uphold with pride."

"And that would be?" Weiss hesitated to ask, sensing for some strange reason that she wouldn't enjoy the answer.

"Flesh and metal will cross for when our blood and kin are preyed upon." Jaune recited, his eyes keeping setting on his fellow division members.

"That's quite a creed; I don't remember that being the Arc creed though."

"That's because it isn't." The boy responded. The heiress, while confused, chose not to further pry. "But I assume you understand at what I'm hinting at." The heiress, again, felt a chill run up her spine as she noticed the blond's expression soured, none of it due to the alcohol in his hand. "If not, then I'll put in simply; from here on out, I will be keeping Xiao Long from actively inciting you, and I'm hoping you'll give my division a chance to do their jobs. But, the next time you think about harassing any of my division members, or anyone acquainted with us, without any legitimate reason to do so…" And for that instant, for the heiress, an image was burned into her mind, as were the words he whispered to her.

Xiao Long and the rest of the Division members had returned to the group table, only to realize their leader was sitting with the heiress at the bar. Only, upon seeing their captain with 'that' look on his face, and the manner in which he seemed to be speaking, neither had any plans on interfering.

"…other than that, we shouldn't have any problems." Jaune finished, awaiting a response, though, initially the heiress had none. She had heard of the manner in which this blond held the division under his thumb. Initially, she believed him to have some form of leverage over his fellow members, now though; she began to get a clear idea of how this Arc kept his team in line. And, oddly enough, the heiress found a reason to respect that. Though, it still unnerved her to a great degree; having to look at him eye to eye when he gave her that expression disturbed her. Against her better judgement, the heiress gripped the small glass and took a sip of the brandy, only for the teen's eyes to shoot wide open. Her hand placed against her mouth as face cringed at the liquid flowing down her throat. Seeing her reaction made the blond captain chuckle a bit. He didn't expect her to drink the liquor, in fact, he expected the heiress to downright reject it.

"Take it easy, whiskey is strong enough, but the Meridian brand isn't meant to be taken in large gulps."

"Says the guy who downed a glass just a few minute ago." Weiss grumbled softly, taking another glance to the drink in her hand, and for some strange reason, she took another sip. This time, her nose twitched as her expression cringed at the taste of the liquor. She glanced to the blond beside her; he having no reaction to casually taking in the foul tasting beverage confused her. "Why drink something so bitter?" She asked, staring at her glass, then to the blond captain.

Jaune responded with a faint grin while holding his glass up. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

From afar, the members of the Disciplinary Division sat quietly, their eyes focused on their leader seemingly getting chummy with the heiress. Initially, the two seemed to have an awkward tension around them that nearly became hostile for some reason, and it would appear the two were on lighter terms. Calling it friendly would be an exaggeration, though, the two seemed to smile a bit more than expected. Of course, that could've been the alcohol.

"Hey…" A quiet voice caught the attention of the teens to the younger of them. "Doesn't it seem ironic for the 'Disciplinary Division' to be here? Drinking?" In response to her question, Yang slung an arm over her baby sister's head.

"Don't worry Rube's, it's not like we're doing anything illegal. Besides, we rarely do this, and the chiefs' been stressed out lately." Yang explained with a toothy grin. Her gaze refocused on Ayana, their expressions shifted to playful glares. "Moving on, I believe someone owes me a bit of lien after last time."

"Dream on Xiao Long, you passed out." the green-haired boy replied. The attention of the table, save for one, were no longer focused on their captain. The latter, having seen the blond captain interact with the heiress for quite some time, arose and walked over to where the two were seated. She had arrived a little late to the little gathering, but she never expected to see the heiress here with Yang and the others, much less actually having a drink and casual conversation with Jaune. Having watched enough, she approached them, her attention focused on the blond.

When she was finally in front of the two, she was greeted as much as she expected; the blond gave her a subtle greeting, while the heiress barely acknowledged her. Two months had passed, and the blond had grown a bit, he talked more, opened up more, and basically tolerated just a bit more of whatever was thrown his way. That being said, there was one factor that seemed to remain unchanged; Coco. From spending as much time as she could, to giving him a greater degree of space, the brown-haired teen could not seem to improve her friendship with the blond. She could understand Ciel; his former lieutenant, and Yang, his current second in command. Even the other division members she could understand, the damned boy worked with them for the better art of the school day. But at this moment, watching him interact with the heiress, seemingly getting chummy so easily, something inside her snapped. If there was one thing those close to her knew; it was to never give Adel alcohol when she was pissed. And at the moment, she had downed, unbeknownst to those around her, a few swigs of ale. She wasn't clumsy, nor did she slur, but she had a tendency for acting out when plastered. Although, there was always a buildup.

"Jaune, I wanna *hic*…go home." Adel mumbled, the blond pinched the bridge of his nose softly before turning to the heiress.

"I'm afraid our conversation ends here."

The heiress, for once in a rare moment, grinned. "I understand. And while I don't intend to make a habit of this, I hope we can speak again. Perhaps another time, and another venue. Until then, Mr. Arc." Weiss had gathered her things and handed the blond a slip of paper. Before getting to ask, the heiress had made her way through the club and seemingly disappeared within the crowds.

As for the blond, he stuffed the paper in his pocket and was about to walk out as well when he came face to face with Coco's glare. She had watched the whole thing unfold, and was none too happy at the moment.

For the whole walk home, Coco stayed close, though she didn't cling to him like she usually would. Which, for the blond, was something he greatly appreciated. Although, it also bothered him; granted, he wasn't too fond of the brown-haired teen, but to see her act so gloomy. Pondering what could be afflicting her, he didn't notice her staring at him the entire time. Once they had reached the apartment, things took a little turn. For one, no one was home, so it was only Adel and Arc again. Not that the two haven't spent time alone with one another, this time, one party was on the edge. As the blond opened his front door, he turned to the teen girl. "I'm gonna brew some coffee, want some?" But, she didn't respond. Rather, she remained still, almost like a statue. In a way, it unnerved him, though, he didn't show much reaction. And then, without warning, the diva bum rushed the blond, tackling him unto the floor of his apartment. Believing this to be one of her shenanigans, he kept still, thinking that if he didn't indulge her, she'd see no point in continuing. Though, as he quickly noted, her grip had not softened, her breathing became heavy with each exhale, and head lowered ever so low. Jaune attempted to free himself, though each time he struggled, he felt Coco's grip tighten. She mumbled something through her heavy breathing, causing the blond to cease his struggling.

"W-what?" he asked, thinking, hoping he heard wrong. To which, Adel leaned down until the two were only inches apart, she drifted to his right ear and whispered ever so softly.

"Mine."

 **And here it is a new chapter. Quick heads up, I wanna thank you all for staying with the story through the beginning. I have two quick announcements, one isn't so much of a big deal, and the other is…kinda. First of all, I didn't have it in mind, but if I can find a way to make it work, I suppose I can make this a harem story, though, I'm going to focus more on the story. Secondly…I'm not as hyped about RWBY as I was before, and that's not to say that I'm gonna stop writing, but I'm just not as motivated as I was when I started out. And as a result of that, I've been finding my recent chapters to be half-assed. Which is why I'm spending more time on rewrites to make sure nothing is too forced or too cheesy.**

 **Be that as it may, I'll still keep writing, I hope you all enjoyed this new edition, keep an eye out for the next one. Until next time!**


	11. A New Arc

Pinned under the iron grip of a beautiful woman, intoxicated, and with little chance of interruptions; in many ways this can be summed up to a fantasy for most. For one particular blond, however, this particular scenery was not exactly on the list of events he wanted to be partaking in. Sadly, the iron grip of said woman holding him down was one that he had yet to discover a way to break free from. And adding in the intoxication equaled a long night if he couldn't take control of the situation. Though, for Jaune, while he wouldn't admit it, this wasn't exactly a new for him. But, considering it was one of his classmates, he wasn't exactly going to just let this continue as it was.

Although. From where he lay, it didn't appear as if Coco was to do anything. Rather, after whispering 'mine' to him, she remained dead silent for a minute. Leaving the blond to struggle aimlessly, all the while dreading whatever his classmate/neighbor had in mind. But, for the sake of easing his mind, he decided to question what exactly she meant by that statement. "Care to clarify what you meant by 'mine'." He asked, using whatever collective calm he had to maintain control of his emotions.

Coco's smile disappeared almost immediately, she leaned towards him ever so closely. "I saw you getting friendly with the heiress. I know how she and that damned president play. I'm not letting Nikos take what's mine." She stated, at this, Jaune rolled his eyes in annoyance, unwilling to allow himself to be caught up in this little feud. That was until he felt warm liquid drop on his cheeks. If only out of curiosity and mild concern, he turned to face Adel, whom had running streams down her cheeks. "Not again..." she mumbled, and while the blond had a growing concern over this little revelation, an itching thought came to mind.

"Hold on...how exactly am I yours?" He asked, annoyed at the idea of someone claiming Provenance over him.

Coco smiled, alarmingly menacing. "Like this." She answered, leaning, at first, slowly, and then rather quickly closed the distance between them.

However, having seen this scenario in films before, and using what strength he could muster, the blond quickly broke his right arm free and placed it between himself and his drunk classmate. Though, it didn't appear as if she noticed, considering she was still seemingly enjoying the sensation. Aside from the ever so vocal moaning, and her straddling him, the blond was not exactly in paradise. Granted, he wouldn't deny that her lips were incredibly soft, perhaps cause he could only feel them from his palm, and he would admit that when it came to her boldness to ride him; it was hard for him not to feel some excitement. But, even for all that, he wouldn't respond to her advances. He knew well how she got when she drank; she was flirty, risky, and downright territorial. And while he knew how she was, he didn't think she'd react this way with him. With Velvet, it was understandable, the girl was cute in every regard. But with him?

Without getting a chance to push her off, Jaune felt something wet and slimy seemingly trying to penetrate through his fingers. An eerie chill crawled up his spine as he quickly realized that Adel had in mind to use tongue in this little attempt. He could feel her tongue breaking past his fingers, sending him into a panicked state where he was actively trying to push her off him. And make no mistake, he struggled as hard as he could, but if there were three defining words to describe the boy, they'd be; tall, blond, and scraggly. Emphasizing on the last trait, he had little strength. So, it was becoming extremely difficult for him to keep the girl at bay. "And when was I ever yours? I thought we were supposed to be friends?" Though, as he felt her start to come ever closer to breaking past his palms and growing ever closer to his mouth, without warning, Coco went motionless. Her hair covering the upper half of her face, unsettling the blond greatly. He believed she had regained some sense, or at the very least was close to passing out. Rather, she sat up, removing her grip on his arms, and with almost lightning speed, her hands were wrapped around the blond's neck.

"THAT'S WHAT I WANTED!?" She hollered out, her pent up rage still building up and ready to be exerted. "But you make it into such a -hic- big deal...why is it so hard...why do you push me away..." Easing her grip on his neck, the stream of tears regained flow, falling almost endlessly down her cheeks. "Why do you hate me?" Before giving Jaune a chance to answer, Coco gripped his blazer and mashed her lips against his.

Putting aside the tingling sensation and a variety of alarms going off in his head, Jaune's brain was still processing what was currently occurring to him. Mainly through reflex and the sudden drop of guard, was he able to push her off him. The blond quickly distanced himself from her, only to hear soft snores. In that moment, he sighed in relief as he took note that the girl had passed out. Feeling luck on his side for once, Jaune quickly picked up his passed out classmate and placed her on his bed. He retrieved his scroll and began texting a for assistance. Though, before he could send the text, a call came in. If it wasn't unsettling that he didn't know the number, without having a chance to reject the call, it connected. Cautiously, he placed the device against his ear. "Hello?"

"I found yo-" Without a second thought, he hung up, switching his device to silent. He knew that voice, and had he not disconnected, he'd have another awkward conversation with an old acquaintance. Not to mention, a call from her could only mean Adam had a job for him, and the last thing he could do was leave Adel in his room, alone. He walked over to his apartment's kitchen sink. Though, before reaching the counter, his legs wobbled, nearly collapsing before grabbing hold of a nearby chair. His mind was still reeling in from what occurred between him and Coco. He wasn't disturbed, nor did he find the experience disgusting. Rather. He couldn't help but wonder why she did it. Yes, she's drunk, which means she's more daring, that much is clear. But even so, he was still curious as to why. Adel had made it clear that she intended to be his friend, but, how did it suddenly switch from that to this? Feeling confused and nervous, Jaune kept his eye on the slumbering teen while also keeping on his toes for any sudden movements.

For about twenty minutes, he waited patiently in his apartment's kitchen. After brewing some coffee, he kept some in reserve for when Adel would awake, though, he doubted it would be any time tonight. But, it didn't hurt to have some just in case, she surprised him on more than one occasion. After a while, he found it in him to approach Coco, who was still deep in slumber. Many things were still being processed in his head, the main event being what would've happened if Adel was still conscious. He couldn't, and wouldn't deny that the kiss was a sensation he did in fact enjoy, albeit with some hesitation. Although, as for if it meant anything...he wasn't sure. This was new for him...somewhat. Regardless, he couldn't act on this. When he told her of the past he wanted left alone, it was for good reasons, mainly due to recent events hinting that the past was coming for him. Whether he liked Coco or not, he wouldn't drag her down with him, not to the level he involved himself in.

He sat on the floor beside the bed, coffee still in hand, his eyes at first glued to anywhere but his passed out roommate. Though, curiosity getting the better of him, he glanced over to Adel, his breath hitched at the sight of her hair draped over her face, her soft breathing seemingly calm. Her porcelain skin, smooth as could be. Subconsciously, Jaune reached over with a free hand and moved away a few strands of hair from her face. In that moment, she looked at peace, nothing like how she usually was. Without thinking, his free hand brushed lightly against her cheeks. A few seconds passed before he realized what he had been doing, he retracted his hand and turned away from Adel. He shook his head and shifted himself towards his closet. Unbeknownst to him, and thankfully to Coco, the blond was blushing, extremely curious as to why he did that so suddenly. Taking a moment to calm himself, Jaune opened his closet carefully, glancing back to Coco who had turned away from him, confusing the blond as he didn't hear her shift. Regardless, he, quietly, rummaged through his closet for something, unaware of the brown haired teen blushing madly.

She had awaken only for a second, but upon feeling the boy's hand caress her cheek, she was wide awake now. Coco remained still, though her heavy breathing, followed with the continuously rapid beating of her heart left her uneasy. At the moment, she heard the boy searching for something in his closet. The rummaging noises stopped after a minute or two, she heard him sigh, almost too softly. Next were the sounds of metal, quiet, but enough for her to hear. What caused her to heart to skip a beat was the sound of something click and him arising from his position.

Soon enough he heard a faint knock on the door. Jaune walked calmly towards the entrance, his hand seemingly stuck to his side. Upon opening it, he released a relaxed sigh as Velvet perked up.

"Hi Jaune." She greeted him happily.

"Hey Velv, I'm really glad you're here. Can I ask a favor of you?" Velvet was surprised to hear the blond ask for help of any kind, but, she agreed almost instantly. "I gotta head out for a bit. Coco is drunk and I need you to watch her till I get back." Velvet's sudden determination deflated like a popped balloon as she turned heel and tried to walk away. She stopped only by the grip of the blond. It wasn't a fierce or painful grip, but one that held authority to it. "She's passed out, and it'll only be for a few hours. 3 at most." It was a rarity to hear Jaune almost plead, and the last thing Velvet wanted was to be left with a drunk Coco, again. But, if she was passed out, then that meant she wouldn't have to worry over any sudden advances. Hesitantly, she nodded.

Releasing a relieved sigh, the blond walked back to his closet, closed it shut and seemingly locked it with a keypad attached to the wall beside it. As he grabbed a nearby coat and was about to walk out he turned back to Velvet. "By the way, if she wakes up, tell her...actually...never mind, I'll tell her when I get back. Want me to bring you any food?"

The bunny girl's ears perked up as her twinkle shone in her eye.

"Beef n Veggies from Mazyaft's?" He asked, to which Velvet nodded happily. With a faint smile, Jaune closed the door and proceeded on his little excursion. Leaving a nervous Velvet with a seemingly passed out Coco. Although, upon further inspection, it was clear to see that the teen was wide awake, and still with a reddened blush. Her hands were clenched, pressing tightly against her chest. Deep in her own thoughts, her mind was in an all-out-war against itself. A tangent of emotions began to form, ones she had felt once before. Dread slowly encompassed her mind as she believed she'd never feel this way towards Jaune. But, that only made it all the more stressful; she had no idea what to do. Nor could she say anything considering the overprotective mother could catch wind and the military teen that actually has these feelings for said blond. Her body stirred ever so slightly, yet still catching the attention of the bunny girl. She flinched upon seeing her friend move, but wasn't going to avoid it. She approached cautiously, worried for her friend, but ever so prepared for any sneak attack she might pull.

"Coco, you Ok?" She asked. Coco quickly sat upright, scaring the bunny girl, causing her to jump back a bit. Though, the fear she felt instantly subsided when she saw her friend's hands clenching her chest tightly, to the point that she could see Adel's expression seemingly shifting between different emotions. "Coco?" She tried approaching once more, now more worried than ever.

Adel kept her head low; she pulled her legs up, placing her knees against her chest whilst clenching her fists. At this point she had begun to worry her friend, so much so that velvet brushed aside the fact that Coco had too much to drink earlier. She sat beside her on the bed as she heard Adel mutter something she never thought she'd hear come out of the brown haired teen. "Why?"

 **-Meanwhile-**

Walking slowly on an empty street, the blond teen's mind was preoccupied over what just happened with Adel. He knew they'd have to talk about this, and the one thing that assured him that this would be a one-time incident was when he remembered their talk a two months prior; Coco's first 'love', a girl, and a Faunus. She hadn't given signs that she was interested in the opposite sex, at least none that he's seen. Of course, he couldn't say he knew Adel so much that he knew who she preferred to mingle with. Still, he stood by his initial stance to all this; he wouldn't get involved.

As he turned into an alleyway, his hands shifted into his pockets. He eyes the dark alley cautiously as his tread led him to a dead end. With little to no lights, it would be hard for him to distinguish anything, but, he wouldn't have problems with that. He felt a familiar sharp dagger tipping at his neck, glancing down he was greeted by the sight of pink and brown. Though, from what little light shone, he could tell that she wasn't too pleased with him. Before getting a chance to speak, the grasped his shirt and brought him towards her, crashing their lips tightly. The blond did nothing, no response, no reaction, not a care whether she did this or had gone through with her previous plan of running him through. Although, he was still eluded as to why this short woman had an affinity for him, given that his interactions with her were not...let's use friendly, in the lack of a better word. When she was happy, she was annoyingly clingy. Silently angry; she showed it subtly, though she rarely did anything. But when she was visibly ticked, she held nothing back. However, how and who she expressed her anger to were different stories all together. For Jaune, as an example, her anger manifested in a way that most would consider a fantasy, to him, though, as hard as it was to believe, he found no enjoyment out of it. Although, admitting this to her only prolonged her anger. So, he kept quiet as she went about her way. Why didn't he fight back? It wasn't that she was stronger than him, but it was due to that fact that pissing her off was to piss off another individual he really did not want to associate with. So, he just let her have her way, like she always did. Eventually, she stopped to take a deep breath, thinking the worst had passed; the blond was suddenly pushed against a nearby wall. Once more, he felt the edge of a dagger press against his neck, with Neo grabbing his collar and pulling him closer to her. Her fingers gestured firstly to him, then to her. Each gesture done with a hardened glare.

"I've heard you speak before. If you could do it then, you can do it now." Jaune commented, annoyed and tired of her silent treatment. Though, what she would do next would unsettle him more than anything she'd done before. She removed the dagger from his neck and pressed it tightly against his stomach, the blade piercing both his clothing and skin. He felt it dig into his flesh, slowly, as Neo's smile had reformed. She made him lean over towards her, inching the blade further in him. Once the two were mere inches apart, face to face, she whispered to him. "You. Are. Mine. And no one else's." She retrieved her scroll and brought up images of Ciel, Coco, and various other girls he had interactions with. One particularly disturbing image was one in which Adel was clinging to him in the way she normally would. Each photo taken from angles he could've sworn he would've seen the short woman. "What part of 'behave yourself' did you not understand?" Her smile had become something wicked, as did her tone.

"That's enough, Neo." Came a voice that, for once in his life, Jaune was glad to hear. From out of the shadows appeared Adam with another beside him. Neo glared at the newcomer, though, she quickly returned her gaze back to Jaune as she intentionally forced her blade out as painfully as possible, and by Oum the blond was sure as hell keeping a straight face as she removed her blade. Once fully removed, the newcomer had rushed over and placed a rag on the wound, helping the blond sit on a crate nearby. Seeing this slightly irritated the short woman, though, anything she would've done was denied when Taurus was around. On this instance though, she had gone too far.

"You're not needed anymore, go home." Taurus commanded, unaffected by her sudden mix of shock and anger at his order. "I won't repeat myself." He threatened, his hand gripping the handle of a firearm holstered at his hip. For a moment, the woman actually considered challenging Taurus had she been better equipped. Neo smiled and turned her gaze back to Jaune, she blew him another kiss and walked away without saying another word.

The blond, however, was mostly just glad to watch her leave. Being near her made him just want to do the same as Adam; keep his hand on his holster at all times.

"Damn, stupid bitch got in pretty deep." The newcomer muttered whilst reaching into a knapsack. Jaune managed to stifle a laugh, settling with a faint chuckle, and earning a confused look from both Taurus and his companion. "What's so damn funny?"

"I didn't think I'd ever hear from you after that mission in Ashval, Amitola." He muttered between labored breathes. There was a moment of silence before the newcomer pulled her hood back to reveal a dark-skinned teen with brown hair tied into a pony-tail.

"Didn't think you'd recognize me." She responded, tending to his wound as carefully as she could. "You didn't seem to pay me any mind then, so why now?"

"You can catch up later; I have an assignment for the two of you." Adam interrupted, extending an arm over to Jaune ad gesturing him to receive whatever was in his closed palm. Instead of the blond retrieving the item, Amitola took the object, revealing it to be a flash drive. She placed the drive in a pocket as she finished sewing up the cut on his stomach. Without waiting for another moment to catch his breath, Jaune shifted upwards, retrieving his scroll and gesturing Amitola to give him the drive.

"Geez, even in death, you'd still be a tight ass." She remarked, giving the blond the device. Upon connecting the drive to the scroll, an image of a familiar heiress and her family appeared. Getting a sense of what his mission would entail, the blond teen was beginning to rethink whether staying in Vale was a good idea. Though, there wasn't much he could do, 'she' would never let him leave the city. And he wasn't thinking of the little pink and brown psychopath.

"The Schnee Patriarch will be making a little visit to Vale in a few months to host a private event. From private mercenaries, to state of the art drones, the place will be heavily guarded. This mission is primarily infiltration, you're going to retrieve some sensitive files that'll give us leverage for…somethings. I need you two to get…chummy with the heiress, she might be your safest way in." Adam explained. Earning a simple nod from the two. "It's a long term assignment, you'll need time to plan your op. So for the next few months, Ilia will be living with you." Adam inserted that last bit a bit too rushed as he had turned his gaze away whilst the information sunk in, leaving the two to stare at Taurus with widened eyes.

"Wait…"

 **-Later-**

"WHAT?!" echoed a yell through the neighborhood around the Fall complex. Cinder had just arrived home when Jaune too was arriving with what appeared to be another new face. A girl now less. Upon questioning him as to why he was with her, and the small duffle bag she was carrying, she received her answer, but was not ready for what she heard. The other tenants peeked outside their rooms. Velvet peeked from Jaune's room and was surprised, and slightly irritated to see him with a girl. What she would hear next wouldn't bode well in the slightest.

"Like I said…" Jaune explained. "She's my cousin, and she's going to stay with me for a bit. At least until she can get her family issues sorted out."

Cinder appeared as if she wanted to counter his argument, but stumbled with her words mostly. Octavia and Sun both snickered, whilst the twins were interested in this 'cousin' of the silent blond. Velvet, upon hearing that she was his cousin, was somewhat at ease, but also slightly put off by the girl's body language. Something about her didn't feel right. Either way, it appeared as though the complex would have a newcomer, under the guise of being related to Jaune. The whole of the complex was unaware of events that would soon come into play in Vale in the very near future.

 **I'm so sorry this chapter is shorter than the last ones, but I do promise that the next will be longer due to the assignment the two will undertake. Now, im extremely sorry for the long wait, I am gonna try to keep updates to a monthly basis, but I cant make any promises. As short as this chapter was, I hope you enjoyed it. Until next time, Ciao!**


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